Author's note -
Here's chapter three and, as promised, there are greater changes than before. I hope you guys approve. This part takes the place of episodes seventeen and eighteen.
Also, here's a little challenge for you. I've already got the ending all planned out, but I want to hear how YOU think it's going to end. Tell me what you think. Who knows, you might surprise me and guess correctly. And by that, I'm not attempting to insult your intelligence, and just think my ending will come as something of a shock.
Disclaimer -
All the characters contained in this story are copyright GAINAX, Project EVA, Movic, and any other company and/or division associated with the creation and/or production of Neon Genesis Evangelion. A.D.Vision holds the copyrights to the translated version of Neon Genesis Evangelion. All characters are used WITHOUT the permission of the aforementioned institutions.
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IMPACT
A sequel to "A Question Of..."
By Room3
Chapter 03 - "The Fourth"
Asuka shot bolt upright as she awoke, trembling in fear. She sobbed and wrapped her arms around her, trying blot out the horrific images that had plagued her. She had had the same nightmare for the past three nights. Breathing heavily, she wiped the sweat from her knotted brow and tried to force herself to relax, but the images continued to fill her mind. Again and again she saw the purple Evangelion slowly sinking into the darkness of the Angel; she heard Shinji scream in terror as it did so.
"Mein Gott," she whispered between the sobs that wracked her young body, "why now?" Yes she'd been terrified of loosing Shinji when the Angel had swallowed him and Unit 01, but why did those memories haunt her nights. She'd thought she'd made peace with that, but perhaps she was still feeling guilty over the part she had played in the events. But she had only been trying to help the boy, help increase his confidence.
Confidence, that was the crux of the matter. Whether she had played a part in it or not, the third-child had become over-confident and had paid the price. Since that moment, his confidence had dropped to an all time low. And that, when she stopped fighting it, was what the girl felt guilty for; that she had done more harm than good to the boy she loved. It was a bitter pill for her to swallow, but swallow it she must. Or she would never have another night of uninterrupted sleep.
She lay back down and pulled the covers under her chin. She'd stopped shaking and breathing hard, but she still felt awful. Slowly though, she was able to clear her mind and relax. Eventually, sleep claimed her.
--------------
Major Katsuragi tried not to fidget as she stood in the illuminated circle. She knew that the dark room was only a projection, but she still felt nervous. She knew the committee were not pleased with her, but she was sure she had made the correct decision.
"Major Katsuragi, you still refuse to allow us to question the only person who was directly in this incident?" Chairman Keele asked, his voice echoing through the room. "The pilot of Unit 01."
"Yes sir," the major replied, steeling herself for the backlash she expected to follow. "It is my belief that he is still emotionally unstable at present, and that bringing him here would be very unwise at the moment."
"Then as his proxy," another voice asked, one she didn't know, "let us ask you Major Katsuragi..."
"Did the Angel's attempt communication with a human being?" yet another asked.
"After reading his report, I could find no concrete evidence to validate that theory," she informed them. "In all likelihood this irregularity in simply an odd coincidence."
"If the subject's memory is correct," a third unknown commented.
"There was evidence that his memory had been tampered with," Misato replied, feeling a need to protect the boy.
"But the Eva's AC recorder was not functioning," the third added. "There is no way to confirm it."
"Was the Angel interested in the human mind?" a fourth asked.
"I cannot answer that question sir," the major said. "Whether the Angel's even have a concept of what the human mind is, or whether they can understand our thought-patterns is completely unknown."
"A new factor has been revealed in this incident, in that the Angel tried to take Eva into itself," the first of the unknown voices said. "Is there any possibility that this aspect may be linked to the predicted thirteenth Angel, and all Angel's there after?"
"Based what we have observed, there appears to be no organisation among the Angels," she answered.
"Correct," the second said. "They have worked independently thus far."
"What do you mean sir?" the major asked, puzzled.
"You may not ask questions," Keele told her.
"Understood," she replied.
"That will be all," the chairman informed her. "Dismissed."
"Yes sir." There was a sound of something being turned off and the image of the major disappeared.
"Well, what do you think Ikari?" Keele asked. An image of the commander appeared in the room. He was sat at his desk, fingers interlocked in his usual pose.
"The Angel's appear to be getting more intelligent," he commented. "There's not much time left."
"Left for us, you mean?" the chairman asked. He received no answer.
--------------
A short time later, at the Tokyo-3 general hospital, a newly transferred nurse was speaking with two of her new colleagues.
"Who's the patient in room 12?" she asked.
"That's the emergency-room patient, from the first Eva incident," another replied. "She's been her for a long time."
"Her injuries are really complicated," the head nurse informed the new arrival.
"Poor girl," the second nurse commented. "And she's still elementary school."
"He's here again today?" the first asked, seeing Toji Suzuhara walk by the office three were sat in.
"Yeah," the head nurse replied, watching him go. "He comes to see her at least twice a week. He's a good brother, thinking about his sister like that."
"Yeah. Boys like that are pretty rare," the second replied, thinking of her own troublesome siblings. Down the corridor, Toji knocked on the door of room 12 and went in.
--------------
At the same time, Commander Ikari and Rei Ayanami were riding on one of the many moving walkways inside Nerv headquarters. It was still early, but Ikari didn't sleep much these days, and Rei had been asked to come in early.
"Rei, are things satisfactory?" Gendo asked the girl, without looking back at her.
"Yes," the first-child replied. "I will be with Dr. Akagi all day tomorrow and the day after that I will be in school." She looked at his back as she spoke.
"And how is school?"
"No problems sir."
"I see. That's good," the commander commented.
--------------
"Class attention," Hikari Horaki called a few hours later, as the teacher entered the classroom. There was a clatter of feet as the student body stood up. "Okay, sit down."
"Well, Ayanami is absent as usual, and so's Mr. Aida," the teacher commented, holding up the register. "Professor Koike is..."
"Hey, what's up with Kensuke?" Shinji asked Toji, who had his feet up on his desk and his arms behind his head. A girl at the back of the class looked less than impressed.
"He's in New Yokosuka to see some dumb battleship," Suzuhara replied. "A ship called Myoko or something like that is in port."
"Mr. Suzuhara," the teacher said, raising his voice. Toji reacted by jumping to his feet.
"Y...yes sir!" he answered, not wanting to get into any more trouble than he already had this month. Shinji quickly looked forward, cringing.
"Will you deliver this document to Miss Ayanami after school?" the teacher asked Toji.
"Yes sir," the boy replied.
--------------
Later that day, everyone present in the Command Centre jumped when alarms started blaring. A few moments of frenzied activity revealed what had triggered the alarms.
"The first branch is still okay?" Makato asked. He was speaking to someone on the phone. "No, no, don't bother. The data from the recon. sat is still being confirmed by the Magi."
"Right," Shigeru said in response to something said over the phone he held. With the call ended, the longhaired technician quickly dialled another number.
--------------
"It disappeared?!" Fuyutski asked, having a hard time believing what he was being told. "The entire second branch just vanished?!" Despite what he heard his companion say, Commander Ikari didn't seem to react.
"Yes sir," Shigeru replied over the phone. "It's been confirmed. It's been wiped off the map."
--------------
"Uh...oh my God!" Misato muttered as she was apprised of the situation. The word 'VANISHED' was repeated over and over on the giant screen at her feet.
"Ad-sec and In-sec are going crazy," Makato told her, from his position on the far side of the screen. "General Affairs is total chaos."
"What do you think...happened over there?" Misato asked. An image of a large crater appeared on the screen.
"It's under investigation," Ritsuko told her friend. The doctor was stood on the major's right. "Our only clues are these recon photo's from the geo-synchronous satellite." The image appeared to rewind itself. "There's nothing else left," Akagi informed her. The image stopped rewinding, and a countdown appeared in the bottom left corner.
"Ten seconds..." the automated voice announced as the playback began. "Nine... Eight... Seven... Six... Five... Four... Three... Two... One... Contact." There was a flash, and what appeared to be a shock wave began to spread outwards from the centre of the image. A red glow followed the wave. As the timer in the corner reached +6, the image was replaced by static.
"This is horrible," Misato commented, finding nothing else to say. She had been rendered almost speechless but what she had just witnessed.
"Evangelion Unit 04, its support group and all the other facilities within an 89 kilometre radius were completely destroyed," Maya Ibuki announced. She was stood to the major's right, along one of the sides.
"Along with thousands of people," Dr. Akagi added. Shigeru held up the clipboard he was holding.
"Looking at the time schedule, it would appear that they were in the middle of installing the experimental S2 unit from Germany," he informed the others. He was stood opposite Maya.
"Potential causes range from insufficient structural integrity to an error in calculation during the preliminary design stage," Maya announced. "That's 32,768 possibilities."
"And that's not mentioning sabotage," Misato added.
"But...it wasn't really an explosion, was it?" Makato asked. "Is just disappeared."
"In all probability, they were swallowed by a Dirac sea, just as Unit 01 was," the doctor replied.
"Then the restored S2 engine is..." Misato began.
"Gone," Ritsuko finished. "Along with our hopes."
"We're being forced to use things we don't understand," Katsuragi said, her voice full of scorn.
Yes, Ritsuko thought, narrowing her eyes. Things like the Eva's.
--------------
"So what's happening with Unit 03?" Misato asked Dr. Akagi as the pair of them rode one of the many escalators a short time later.
"It's being shipped here as we speak," Ritsuko informed the major. "The US government doesn't want to risk loosing their first branch as well."
"But they insisted on the rights to build Units 03 and 04 in the first place!" Misato exclaimed, annoyed by the American government's attitude. "And now they're forcing it off on us? Talk about pushing it!"
"Well, you can't blame them, can you?" the blonde doctor asked. "After a disaster like that, anyone would get nervous. We'll handle it."
"What about the test activation?" Katsuragi enquired. "How are you gonna handle that? Will you use Rei's dummy plug?"
"I'll decide soon," Ritsuko replied, sighing. She didn't want to tell Misato about the reservations she had about the dummy plug. She stepped off the escalator and headed for the meeting she now had to attend, organising her thoughts as she walked. The commander had requested an update on the progress of the dummy system, and the doctor was unsure how he would react to what she had to say.
--------------
"This is the dummy plug prototype," Ritsuko informed Commander Ikari, gesturing to the large red cylinder suspended from the ceiling. She voice echoed around the large chamber. Gendo cast a look over the prototype, which looked almost identical to a standard entry-plug.
"Rei's personal data has been transferred into it," she continued, "but our current technology can't really digitise a human mind and soul. In the end, this is nothing but a pale duplication that emulates the real pilot's thinking processes. It's still only a machine."
"It transmits a signal pattern to the Eva. If the Eva believes there is a pilot, and synchronises, then that's good enough," Ikari told her, considering her words. "Load the data into Unit's 01 and 02."
"But we're still working out the bugs, sir," the doctor told her superior.
"Just do it," the commander ordered. "It's sufficient."
"Yes sir." Ikari looked away from the ceiling and began to leave the chamber. Ritsuko followed him, knowing where he was headed.
--------------
"I've delegated the transport of the unit to the UN," the commander stated a short time later. The two were now deep in Nerv headquarters, in Terminal Dogma. "It will be here by the end of the weekend. At that time, you will take of it."
"Yes sir," the doctor replied, looking at the first-child, who was floating within the tube before them. "We'll perform the modifications and activation test in Matsushiro," she informed Ikari, as she looked at the girl. Rei's eyes were closed and she appeared peaceful.
"Hmm. And the test pilot?" Gendo asked.
"Use of the dummy plug is not recommended," Ritsuko answered. "One of our candidates..."
"Will be chosen as the fourth," he finished for her.
"Yes sir," she responded. "There is one child available whose core can be prepared immediately," she added after a moments thought.
"Then make it so."
"Yes sir."
"Rei," Gendo said, raising his voice, "we're finished now." The first-child opened her eyes and smiled.
"Right," she replied, her voice muffled by the liquid in the tube.
"Let's eat," Ikari said, appearing cheerful.
"Yes sir," Ayanami replied. Ritsuko looked on, unhappy at the attention the commander was showing the girl.
--------------
"Yeah! Lunch time at last!" Toji cried as he dumped a large pile of food on his desk. "My very favourite part of the entire school day."
"WHAT?!" Asuka cried, causing him to look in the direction her screech had come from. She was stood over Shinji's desk, leaning towards him menacingly. "Why haven't you made our lunches?" she demanded. Shinji shrunk away from her.
"I...I didn't have a chance to cook. I was too busy," the third-child told her.
"Oh you were, were you?" the second-child asked, looking pretty pissed off to Toji. "And because of that, I'm gonna have to go hungry?!"
"I'm sorry," Shinji replied, cowering from her.
"Uh oh," he said aloud. "The newly-weds are fighting!" The classroom erupted into laughter at the expense of the two pilots, who blushed.
"Oh shut up!" both Shinji and Asuka exclaimed in unison. Asuka stalked back to her seat, and slumped down in it, crossing her arms. She appeared to be fuming, but inside, she was elated.
My plan worked to perfection, she thought. I can afford to go hungry if it helps us keep our little secret. Her mind drifted back to the events of that morning.
----FLASHBACK--------------------------
That morning, Misato had gone to work early. She hadn't told the two pilots why though, which was a little unusual. Asuka hadn't minded being woken early by the major stumbling around the apartment, trying to be quiet. It had given her and Shinji a chance to spend some quality time together.
They'd spent almost an hour watching television, sat close to each other. Shinji had surprised her when he'd put his arm around her shoulders, but there was no way she would've complained. Despite what she had thought, she luxuriated in the casual contact the two allowed themselves when they were alone.
After the programme they had been watching had ended, Asuka had decided to surprise him. She had pulled away from him, and looked at him. Just as he had been about to say something, the German had planted a kiss on his mouth, silencing him. Breaking the kiss after a few moments, she had got up and gone to her room to get ready for school.
It had been while she had been getting changed, that the idea had come to her. She'd been thinking about the conversation she'd had with Kaji before the last Angel had appeared, and she'd realised that she and Shinji had been acting differently towards each other in public. It was then that she had decided that something had to be done before anyone else figured it out.
--------------
When she'd gone back into the living room, the object of her affections was sat on the couch, looking out the window. Hearing her come in, Shinji had stood up, smiling at her. She had returned his smile and had walked over to him. After dropping her school bag to the floor, she had pulled the boy into her embrace. Asuka had sighed as she'd felt his arms wrap around her.
"I love you Shinji," she had said, contentedly, her head resting on his shoulder. It had taken him a few moments to respond.
"And I love you Asuka," the boy had told her.
"I know you do," the girl had replied, breaking their embrace. "I see it in your eyes when you look at me," she'd commented. "And that's the problem."
"What do you mean?" Shinji had asked, obviously worried. The redhead looked into his eyes before answering.
"We've been acting differently around each other recently," she'd replied, "in public, I mean." The Japanese boy had frowned, clearly not understanding what she was getting at. "We haven't fought for weeks."
"But I don't want to fight with you," Shinji had informed her. She'd smiled back at him.
"I don't either," Asuka had assured him, "but if we're gonna keep us a secret, we might need to stage one." It had been a long few seconds before the boy had responded.
"But what about?" he'd asked, accepting the need.
"Good point," the German had answered. "It needs to be a good one." She'd paused for a short time while she thought of something. "I know. You forget to do our lunches."
"I'd never forget that," Shinji had told her.
"Then you were too busy."
"S...sounds good," the boy had replied, a little tentative.
"Okay. I confront you at lunchtime," she had told Shinji, getting caught up in her scheme. "I'll make it loud, so the whole class hears. Which is just how I would've done it before we hooked up," she had added, flashing Shinji a smile. "You say you were too busy. I complain. You apologise. That should do the trick."
"Yeah. I think it will. But what about lunch?" he'd asked, catching her off-guard. "Won't you be hungry?"
"Yeah, I will," she had replied, sighing. "I know, I'll make us a big breakfast, and when we get home we can stuff ourselves!"
"Sounds like a plan to me."
"Good," the German had commented. "Then I'll get started with breakfast," she'd added, heading for the kitchen.
"Do you want a hand?" Shinji had called after her.
"I'll call if I do," she'd answered from the doorway. It had taken her a good half an hour to make their breakfast, even with Shinji's help. They'd eaten in silence, stealing looks at each other and smiling a lot.
----END OF FLASHBACK-------------------
A thought suddenly occurred to the German. I'll have to go see Kaji, and soon, she mused, realising she hadn't made the only other person who knew about the relationship between her and Shinji promise to keep it a secret.
--------------
"Why so glum?" Misato asked Ritsuko as she perched on the edge of the desk in the latter's office. Dr. Akagi was busy typing up the schedule for the Unit 03 modifications and activation test.
"Ah...well... It's the Unit 03 activation test. We'll be using the fourth as the test pilot," the doctor informed her friend.
"The fourth?" Katsuragi asked, looking up. "You mean the fourth-child's been found? When?" she inquired, looking at the blonde-haired lady.
"Yesterday," Ritsuko answered.
"What about the report from the Marduk Institute?" Misato asked, suspicious. "I haven't received it yet."
"Don't worry Major," Akagi assured her. "You'll get your report."
"You're not hiding something, are you Ritsuko?" the major asked, looking away and sighing.
"No, of course not," her friend replied.
"Well, okay," Major Katsuragi replied absently. She stood up and moved so she was stood behind the doctor, looking at the computer screen. "So who's the kid?" Dr. Akagi called up the pertinent file and Misato gasped as she recognised the chosen fourth-child's name. "You're kidding!" the major gasped. "Him?!"
"Yes, well, the prospective candidates have to be kept together for their own protection," Ritsuko informed the major. "It can't be helped." Misato straightened up and folded her arms.
"I...I don't know how I'm going to tell them," she said, deep in thought. "Rei will be fine with it. Asuka'll be pissed, but she'll accept it. But Shinji..." she trailed off, closing her arms. "He's had it so rough. This'll be hardest on him."
"I know. But gathering children of this kind is an imperative," the doctor replied. She understood Misato's misgivings, but there was no other choice. "It's for the sake of our own survival. You shouldn't..."
"Shouldn't complicate things?" the major asked, looking at Ritsuko. She sighed. "Of course."
--------------
"Class dismissed," Hikari announced as the bell signalling the end of the school day sounded. "Bye. See you later." She responded absently to the farewells of her classmates as she made her way to Toji's desk.
"Hey, don't forget you've got bulletin duty this week Suzuhara," she told the boy as he packed his stuff away. Toji looked at her blankly.
"I've got what?" he asked, puzzled. The class rep held a collection of papers in front of his face.
"The class bulletin, remember?" Hikari asked. The boy took the pile from her. "You're supposed to deliver this to Miss Ayanami."
"Ah, come on," he complained, trying to worm his way out of it. "Who else has duty?"
"It's you and Ayanami this week," the girl informed him. Suzuhara slung his bag over his shoulder.
"It's Ayanami and me?!" he exclaimed. "Then I guess I got it, huh," he added, realising there was no getting out of it. He looked at the papers in his hand thoughtfully. "But I can't go to some girl's place by myself," he muttered. A smile appeared on the face of the girl stood in front of him.
"Ah, I could go with you..." Hikari started saying, but the boy cut her off.
"Hey! Shinji!" he called, looking past her. Her face dropped, and she stepped to one side to follow his look. She spotted Shinji as he stood in the doorway, looking at Toji. "Walk home with me, will ya?" Suzuhara asked, walking towards the door. "You know where Ayanami lives, right?"
Hikari stood and watched him go, one hand held out in front of her. She lowered her head as she felt her heart sink. As the classroom door slid shut and groan of disappointment escaped her. She dropped her hand and hung her head even lower, fighting what felt like bitterness rising within her.
--------------
Shinji and Toji stood in the corridor outside Rei's apartment. The third-child reached over and pressed the buzzer on the intercom. When there was no response after several seconds, he pushed the button again. Still no reply.
"Hey, Rei. I'm coming in," Shinji called, taking hold of the door handle.
"Hey, you can't enter a girl's place without her permission," Toji told him, grabbing his arm to stop him.
"It's not like we have a choice," Ikari replied, looking at his friend. "She won't see it if we leave it here," he added, gesturing to the overflowing mailbox. Suzuhara looked uncertain, but he made no attempt to stop Shinji as the latter opened the door.
"Uh... Is anybody home?" he called, looking through the open door. When there was no response, the two boys went inside, leaving their shoes by the door.
"My God! This is a girl's room?!" Toji cried as he took in the condition of Ayanami's dwelling. "It's so...decrepit." The bed was unmade, and there were piles of rubbish by the head of it, and by the refrigerator. A glint of light caught the taller boy's eye, and he looked over at the chest of drawers as Shinji walked over to the bed. The glint had come from a pair of cracked glasses lying on top.
Who the heck are those? he wondered. He knew that Rei didn't wear spectacles. A rustling sound interrupted his musings. Looking over, he saw Shinji kneeling by the bed, picking up the rubbish.
"You shouldn't touch anything! She'll get pissed," Toji told the third-child.
"I'm just cleaning up," Shinji replied.
"Well... I won't help you do it," Suzuhara told him, turning away and folding his arms. "It's just not manly."
"No one asked you to," the third-child responded. "But, you know, Misato hates guys like that."
"I don't care!" Toji replied through gritted teeth. "It's my policy, all right?" Ikari just looked at him, smiling. Having picked up all the rubbish by the bed, he walked over to the fridge, and started cleaning there too. Toji grabbed the single chair in the room and sat on it backwards, his arms resting on the backrest.
"You know, now that I think about it... You've changed," he commented.
"What?" Shinji asked, stopping what he was doing. Have I? he thought. Maybe I have. Asuka would know. The third-child looked at his friend.
"The first time I saw you, I really thought you were the world's biggest jerk," Toji related. "I mean... You sure didn't seem like someone who'd do something for someone else back then." The boy looked up at the ceiling. "Ha, I guess you were so deep in your shell that I couldn't see the real you." Shinji looked at the floor, considering his friend's words.
The sound of the door opening made them both turn and look as Rei entered he apartment. She walked into the room puzzled by their presence, but apparently unfazed.
"Err, hi," Toji said as she passed him, raising one hand in greeting. "Excuse us," he added.
"What for?" Ayanami asked, looking at him blankly.
"We, err, bought you your school bulletins," he answered, pointing at the pile of papers on her bed. She looked at them, and was surprised when see noticed that the rubbish by her bed missing.
"I'm sorry," Shinji said, noticing her expression. The first-child looked at him. "I cleaned up a little," he told her. "It was just trash, right?" he asked, holding up the filled bag.
"Uh... Thank you," Rei said, blushing.
"Well, we gotta go," Toji said, getting to his feet. He grabbed his schoolbag from the floor and gestured for Shinji to follow.
"I, uh, don't know where you put your rubbish," Shinji told the girl. He tied the bag up. "I'll leave it here, if that's all right," he added, putting it beside the fridge. Rei nodded and he picked up his bag and left. "See you tomorrow," he called as he closed her door.
"Man, you Eva pilots sure are a bunch of wackos, huh?" Toji commented as the two boys stepped back out onto the street.
--------------
Back in her apartment, Rei had drawn the curtains and was lead face down on her now made bed. Her chin was resting on her pillow and her arms were crossed in front of her face.
Thank you, she thought. Words of gratitude. Words I've never used before. Not even with him. She sat up and looked at the glasses on the chest of drawers.
--------------
Commander's Fuyutski and Ikari rode the Nerv monorail to headquarters as the sun began to set later that day. Both men were looking out the window, at the city as it passed them by. Kouzou Fuyutski was struck by how beautiful it was, but he doubted his companion was thinking along those lines.
"The City," he said. "A paradise made by mankind."
"Driven from paradise, man escapes to this earthly existence on the edge of death," Gendo responded. "Created by the weakest of beings; created by the sapience born from that weakness, this paradise is our creation."
"To protect ourselves from the fear death instils," Fuyutski replied, beginning to enjoy this discussion, "to satiate our beings with pleasure, we created a paradise by and of ourselves. The city is surely such a paradise. The city designed and built to protect us."
"A city for those who run in fear from the outside world," Ikari told him, his voice full of scorn. "A world of our enemies." The monorail entered a tunnel, and began its descent through the Geo Front. A moment later, the lights in the car came on.
"Of course, cowards do tend to live longer. That's one benefit," Fuyutski commented, cheerfully.
"Hmm."
"The third New Tokyo, Nerv's hidden intercept base. And now, the long delayed seventh construction phase is about to be finished at last," Kouzou added, noting his superior's non-talkative mode. "It's almost complete." The monorail passed into the open air below the armour plating.
"Now, about Unit 04's 'accident'. How will you present that to the committee?" Fuyutski asked, changing the subject.
"With the facts," Ikari replied. "The cause is unknown."
"But...this was a major catastrophe," the grey-haired man said, shocked.
"It was of no consequence to us," Gendo told him. "The S2 engine sample may have been lost, but the data is still in Germany. This installation and Unit 01 will be sufficient."
"But the committee is in a total panic."
"Of course they're panicked," Ikari told his colleague. "It wasn't scheduled."
"Yes," Kouzou replied, tipping his head back and chuckling. "Seele must be busy rewriting their schedules now."
"Incidents not depicted in the Dead Sea Scrolls may occur. This should teach the old men a lesson," Gendo added. He sounded almost pleased.
--------------
Meanwhile, in one of the many staff rest area within headquarters, Ryoji Kaji was leant against one of the vending machines that lined the walls. Maya Ibuki was sat on one of the benches, holding her ever-present clipboard.
"The Third District Transformation and Directional Weapon experiment will be held on schedule," the bases automated voice announced over the intercom. Kaji took a swig from the can in his hand.
"The intercept system is completed, and they're not going to have a party for it?!" he asked, swallowing his drink. "Nerv has got to be the most inflexible and stifling organisation on Earth," he added, tossing his can into the overflowing bin beside him. It bounced off of two other cans, knocking them to the floor.
"Well, it's because of Commander Ikari," Maya told him. He stood up straight and sauntered over to the lieutenant.
"And are you a prude too?" he asked, leaning forward
"I don't think that's pertinent data sir," she told him, shuffling backwards on the bench. "And, uh, I'm going to have to tell Major Katsuragi and Dr. Akagi about this."
"Not if I cover your mouth with mine," Ryoji replied, closing the distance between their faces.
"Kaji! How's it going?" Misato called cheerfully from the entrance. Kaji's face lost its smile as he recognised her voice. He pulled back and looked at the major.
"Well, uh...it's going I guess," Kaji replied, straightening up. Ibuki took advantage of the situation and quickly got to her feet.
"Oh I have...work to do," she muttered, hiding her face behind her clipboard. "Excuse me." She quickly backed away from Kaji and left the rest area.
"Far be it from me to make judgements on your private life," Misato said, sternly once she was sure Maya had gone, "but under the current situation, are you sure it's wise to be hitting on people under certain chains of command?" Kaji sat down, having tidied the cans in the overflowing bin as she spoke.
"That's not your concern," he replied, looking at her. "Would you prefer to be hit on?"
"That depends on how you answer this," Katsuragi told him, moving to the vending machine he'd been leaning against earlier. "You know the secrets behind the Marduk Institute and that Adam thing, right?"
"Uh... What secrets?" Ryoji asked, looking away and playing innocent.
"Don't play games!" Misato snapped at him.
"This isn't like you Misato, asking for help," he commented, looking back at her.
"Well I'm asking Kaji," she told him. "It was just too convenient, the fourth-child being found like that. Something stinks here."
"I'll tell you one thing," Kaji replied, getting to his feet. "That fancy Marduk Institute, it doesn't exist. Nerv is pulling all the strings," he informed her, putting his face a short distance from hers.
"Nerv's pulling the strings? Commander Ikari?"
"You want a place to start? Try 707," Kaji told her.
"Code 707," Misato muttered, thoughtfully. "That's Shinji's school, isn't it?" Kaji took a couple of steps back, hearing footsteps approaching.
"Misato," Shinji called from the entrance. Kaji grabbed a can from the bin beside him and pretended to be drinking from it.
"Yes?" Misato asked cheerfully.
"Ritsuko says she's expecting you for a meeting about tomorrows trip," the third-child informed her.
"All right. Thank you," the major replied. "See you later," she muttered, walking past Kaji.
"Uh huh," Ryoji replied, the can held to his mouth. Shinji walked over to him, wondering what the two adults had been discussing. Kaji put the can in the bin as the boy approached. "So, can I buy you a drink Mr. Ikari? Cup 'o tea?" he asked.
"Kaji..." Shinji replied, staring him in the eye, "I'm a boy!"
--------------
"I gotta say, I thought you'd be more serious Kaji," Shinji said, cradling the can he had bought from the nearby vending machine. The two of them had moved outside of headquarters, and were not sat on a park bench several hundred metres from the facility.
"You're saying that to someone as straight arrow and reliable as me Mr. Ikari?" Kaji inquired.
"I... I'm sorry," the boy replied, lowering his head.
"I'm sorry too. I didn't mean to sound...rude," Ryoji replied. "Hey, I wanna show you something," he added, standing up. The third child looked at him. "Come on." Shinji stood up and followed him, putting his can in a bin as they passed it. A few moments later, the two arrived at their destination. The third-child was surprised to see the small patch of plants that Kaji was tending. He watched as his companion opened as small shack nearby and removed a watering can.
"You grow...melons?" the boy asked, kneeling down amongst the vines.
"Yeah, aren't they cute?" Kaji replied, looking at Shinji as he watered his little garden. "This is my hobby. But, keep it a secret, okay?" He sighed, feeling content. "Making something grow can be really great," he added wistfully. "You learn so many things from the process." He looked out over his garden. "It also brings pleasure," he added after a moment's silence.
"But pain too, right?" Shinji asked, standing up. Kaji considered this for a moment, before replying.
"Do you hate pain?" he asked.
"I...don't like it," the boy answered, looking at the plants before him.
"Ah, but have you found what gives you pleasure?" Kaji asked slyly, looking from the corner of his eye. He already knew the answer, but he wanted to see if the boy would admit to it. He was surprised when Shinji smiled in response.
"Well, if you've known pain and hardship, then it's easier to be kind to others," Ryoji related. "Being kind isn't a weakness," he added. The ringing of his phone pre-empted any further conversation. The third-child watched as Kaji put his watering can down and pulled out the phone.
"Hello. Yes." A pause. "Hmm." He looked at the boy. "It's Katsuragi," he informed him. "The synch test will be starting soon."
--------------
"Hmm. That's unexpected," Ritsuko said as she leant over the console Maya was using. The harmonic test was in progress and she was monitoring the results.
"What is it?" Misato asked, fearing the worst.
"It's Shinji's synch ratio," Akagi said, looking through the observation window at the test chamber.
"What about it?" the major enquired, looking at the doctor.
"Given what happened with the last Angel, I'd have expected his score to drop," Ritsuko told her friend.
"It hasn't?" Katsuragi asked.
"Well, it's fluctuating a little, but he's only lost four points. Nothing major," Akagi replied. "You know, I thought he'd be hesitant to pilot after the incident," she added.
"He hasn't said anything about not wanting to pilot," Misato commented, looking at the test chamber thoughtfully.
"But have you asked him?" Ritsuko queried, straightening up.
"No," the boy's guardian replied, sighing.
"Well, a fluctuating ratio may affect his ability to pilot, but then again it might not," The blonde-haired lady informed the major.
"He has been a little quieter than usual since..." Katsuragi said, trailing off to avoid the painful memories that accompanied any mention of what had happened with the last Angel.
"The fluctuation is probably a representation of his mental state," Ritsuko told her, leaning forward to type a command into Maya's console. "Try getting him to talk about how he feels about what happened."
"I'll try," Misato informed the doctor, her voice low, clearly expressing her concerns. "This is gonna make it even harder to tell him...about the pilot."
"Well, the new pilot will be informed officially tomorrow," Dr. Akagi told her. Misato sighed, and stared out in to space, her mind racing.
--------------
"Everyone stand up. Dismissed," Hikari Horaki announced. There was a clatter of feet and chairs being moved as the students of class 2A began their lunch break the next day. Kensuke stood up and wandered over to Toji's desk.
"All right, lunchtime," Suzuhara cried, stretching his arms out behind him. As usual, the boy had his feet on his desk.
"Toji Suzuhara, report to the principal's office," the school secretary announced over the PA system.
"Huh, what?" the boy in question asked, sitting up straight.
"What you do now?" Kensuke asked.
"Uh, I don't know," Toji replied, puzzled. He got to his feet. "Well, I'd better go find out what they want," he said, wandering over to the door. From his seat, Shinji watched him go, puzzled. A couple of minutes later and Toji was stood outside the principal's office. He knocked once and opened the door.
"Excuse me. I'm Toji Suzuhara," he said as he stepped inside.
"You're Toji Suzuhara?" Dr. Akagi asked, looking the boy over as he entered the office.
--------------
"So how was your trip to New Yokosuka?" Shinji asked Kensuke as the two of them looked out from the roof. Their lunches hung in bags from the railing surrounding the edge. The bespectacled youth was sat on the wrong side of the railing, his feet dangling over the lip of the building.
"Oh, it was way cool!" Kensuke answered. "Speaking of which, I did pick up some disturbing information," he added, looking at his friend, who was leaning against the railing. He quietly told the pilot on of the rumours he'd heard the day before.
"Eva Unit 03?" Shinji asked.
"Yeah. The one they built in the US," Aida replied. "It's been completed, hasn't it?"
"I...I don't know," the third-child answered, looking out over the school grounds. Kensuke leant towards him.
"I know it's classified, but come on. You've got to tell me something!" Kensuke begged.
"But I don't know! Really." Ikari assured him.
"Haven't you heard the rumour that the activation test will be held at the second test facility in Matsushiro?" the bespectacled youth asked.
"No, I hadn't," Shinji replied.
"Then the pilot hasn't been chosen yet?" Kensuke asked, tilting his head.
"How would I know?" his friend replied, looking in his direction. The sunlight glinting off Kensuke's glasses made him look away.
"Misato could choose me for the position," Aida said, getting excited. "Shinji, would you ask her for me? I really wanna be an Eva pilot!"
"I...I don't know if she could or not."
"Hmm," Aida replied, leaning back against the railings. "Well, what about the story that Unit 04 was lost?"
"Was lost?" the pilot asked, looking at his friend with a look of disbelief.
"You really didn't know?!" Kensuke asked, incredulously. "It disappeared along with the entire second branch. My dad's whole section was in a panic!" he related
"Are...are you sure?" Shinji asked.
"I've got my sources," Aida replied.
"Misato didn't tell me anything," the third-child told him, looking back out over school grounds.
"Well, you know... I guess it really doesn't concern the pilots," the boy with the glasses replied. "If she didn't tell you, it's probably because you don't need to know. I'm sorry about bothering you with all these weird questions." He stood up and looked around, puzzled. "Hasn't Toji come back yet?"
--------------
"Thus, we, mankind, survived the hell called Second Impact and rose again," the teacher said. The students were mostly busy making notes on the lesson, but a few had other things on their minds. Shinji was staring at Toji's empty seat, curious as to where his friend was. Hikari was looking at the same empty seat, looking worried about its missing occupant. "The number of children has been decreasing on a yearly basis..." The door at the back of the classroom opened and Toji entered to find most of the class looking at him.
"Uh, sorry I'm late," he said rather flatly, sliding the door closed.
"I know about it," the teacher told him, upset at the interruption of his lesson. "Be seated." Suzuhara wandered slowly to his desk and sat down, unaware that a certain girl watched. "Anyway, it is you, the younger generation who will lead the way to the future." Toji sighed heavily.
--------------
"Let's get outta here," Kensuke said as he wandered over to Shinji's seat after the class was dismissed for the day. Ikari was packing his bag when his friend approached.
"And Toji?" the third-child asked, looking behind him. Both of them looked at the apparently depressed youth still sat at his desk.
"Oh he's gonna be here late," Aida replied. "He's got clean up duty today."
"Oh," Shinji replied, closing his bag. He stood and began walking towards the door. "See ya Toji," he called from the doorway. Suzuhara looked at him blankly, before returning his gaze to the black board behind the teacher's desk.
--------------
Toji Suzuhara sat at his desk eating as the light from the setting sun filled the classroom. He'd already taken the trash out to the incinerators, now all he had to do was tidy the room.
"The school is now closing," the recorded voice of the school secretary announced over the PA system as Hikari wandered through the open door. "All students must go to their homes immediately."
"Oh, Suzuhara," the class rep said when she saw the boy. He looked up and stopped with a cake halfway to his mouth.
"Uh?"
"You're on clean up duty," the girl told him. She looked away. "You have to line up these desks and clean off the black boards."
"I haven't had lunch yet," he told her flatly, taking a bite from the cake. "I'll do it as soon as I've eaten."
"Do you always buy your lunch from the school shop?" Hikari asked, looking back at him.
"Of course," he replied, swallowing. "There's no one at home who can cook." He picked up a milk carton and began to drink from it.
"Suzuhara...uh..." the girl began, but trailed off, overcome by nerves.
"Hmm?" he replied, looking at her.
"I have two sisters," Hikari told him, looking away, feeling incredibly shy. "Their names are Kodama and Nozomi. And I always make lunches for them every day."
"Hmm, that's sure a lot of work," Toji commented, putting the now empty carton down.
"I'm actually a pretty good cook," she told the boy, looking at him, "but I guess you might not expect that." He raised an eyebrow, curious as to where this discussion was going. "And, you see..." she added, looking away again, "I always end up cooking too much for our lunches."
"Huh, that's definitely a waste," the boy replied. Hikari looked up at him. "You know, if you need help getting rid of the leftovers, I'll help," he told her.
"Yes please," she replied, smiling warmly.
--------------
"Hi Kaji," Asuka said as she slid open the door of his office. He was sat at his desk, busy typing on his computer.
"Oh, Asuka. Sorry, I'm busy right now," Ryoji told her without looking round. "Can't it wait?" The German stepped in and closed the door before answering.
"No," she replied, "it can't." The tone of her voice made the man stop and turn to look at her. She met his gaze and held it, despite feeling the need to look away.
"So what's so important?" he asked a moment later.
"Have you told anyone about Shinji and me?" she asked, closing the distance between the two of them. She stopped less than a metre from him.
"No," he assured her, turning his chair round so he wasn't twisting to look at her.
"Good," she replied. "Don't, please."
"If you tell me one thing," he told her, smiling at her.
"What?" the second-child enquired.
"Have you told him how you feel?" Kaji asked her. She was a little surprised by his question, but didn't hesitate to answer.
"Uh huh. Right after we got him back from the Angel," Asuka replied. "And you were right," she added. "All that time he was missing, I couldn't stand the thought of losing him without him knowing how I feel."
"I thought as much," he replied. "And does he feel the same?" The redhead nodded. "I'm glad to hear it," he told her.
"So, what are you working on?" the pilot asked him, trying to look at his screen.
"What? Oh nothing," he replied, doing his best to block her view. He had been caught off-guard by her sudden change of subject, but he didn't want her to see what he'd been doing.
"Oh, come on Kaji," she replied in her sweetest voice. "Lemme see." Ryoji sighed, realising he wasn't going to dissuade her, and moved his chair to allow her a closer look.
"Oh, our synch reports," she muttered. There's mine, Rei's, Shinji's and... she thought, gasping when she realised there were four reports. "Four?" she asked, looking at Kaji. "Who..." she began, looking back at the screen.
"HIM?!" Asuka cried, seeing the name on the fourth report. "He's the fourth-child?!" She looked at Kaji and he nodded. "I don't believe it!" she gasped. She felt as if the world was playing a cruel joke on her.
--------------
"Maglev six-four calling Neo-path four-zero-zero, confirm cumuli nimbus posits in our immediate flight path," the pilot of the transport carrying Evangelion Unit 03 requested. He wasn't really sure what effect flying through a storm would have on the robot his plane was carrying. "Over."
"This is Neo-path four-zero-zero. Cumuli nimbus clouds confirmed," a voice over the radio responded. "Barometer indicates no hazards. Maintain course and expect to arrive on schedule."
"This is XO six-four. Roger and out," the pilot replied, relieved. He smiled at his co-pilot and looked at the official behind them. "It's safe," he told her, smiling. She nodded, and regretted the movement instantly. Why had she been selected to accompany the Eva? It was well known that she got airsick.
The transport continued along its current course and entered the cloud formation. As soon as it had disappeared within it, orange energy crackled along the surface of the cloud.
--------------
"Where's Asuka?" Misato asked Shinji as she came out from her room. The boy looked at her, surprised to see her wearing her formal uniform.
"She already left," the third-child told his guardian from his position on the couch. "She said she wanted to be alone." He sighed. There had been something bothering the girl, that Shinji knew. And despite the fact that they had promised to talk about everything, Asuka hadn't told him what it was.
"Don't worry about it Shinji," the major said, carrying a number of bags to the front door. "A teenage girl can be difficult to understand."
"Are...are the rumours about Unit 04 really true?" Shinji asked, standing up. Misato looked at him, surprised. "I heard that...that there was some kind of accident, and that it exploded."
"I'm afraid so," she replied. "Unit 04 is gone, along with the American second branch." She sighed, noticing how dejected he looked. "It happened while they were testing the S2 engine," she added.
"Hmm. Wha...what happened?" he asked, looking out of the window.
"We're not sure yet," Katsuragi answered. "But don't worry, we'll be all right," she told him. "All three of our Eva's are functioning properly. And our pilots and staff are in good shape too."
"I also heard that Unit 03 is being brought here," Shinji related, looking at the luggage by the door. "You're performing the activation test at Matsushiro aren't you?" Misato took a few moments to organise her thoughts before speaking.
"Yes, I am. I'll be gone for about four days or so," the major informed the boy. "Kaji's gonna come over to look after you and Asuka."
"Is Dr. Akagi going with you?" the pilot asked.
"Uh huh. So don't worry about it, she'll be supervising everything."
"And who'll pilot the Eva?" Shinji asked, curious. Misato swallowed hard. This was the question she'd been dreading.
"Well, the pilot is..." she said, trailing off. Before anything else could be said, the phone rang. The major, glad of the interruption, walked over and answered it. "Hello." There was a short pause. "Oh, hi Ritsuko." Another pause, this one longer. "I'm on my way," she said, finishing the call. "I gotta go," she told Shinji, looking at the boy. She walked over to the front door and picked up her bags. "Bye Shinji," she said, opening the door.
"Good morning, Major Katsuragi," Kensuke said as the door opened, making Misato jump. "I've come to ask for your help!" She looked at him, curious as to what the bespectacled youth wanted. "I'm begging you. You've just got to choose me as the pilot for Evangelion Unit 03! You gotta!" Her mouth hung open in surprise.
--------------
"So, you haven't told Shinji yet, huh?" Ritsuko asked the major as the lorry they rode in drove along one of the many quiet roads leading to the test site. Misato was staring out of the window, watching the fields pass by. The doctor was busy analysing the data her laptop displayed.
"I just can't seem to find a chance to tell him," Misato replied, sighing. "I'm worried. There are times when I just can't figure out what he's thinking, you know?"
"Oh get a grip kid," Ritsuko told her friend. "You're the one who wanted to be his guardian."
"Yeah. You're right, of course," the major responded, sadly. "Um, so, when will you acquire the new pilot?"
"Tomorrow. There are still some details to be ironed out."
"Maybe the pilot will tell Shinji."
"Oh, I rather doubt it," Akagi told the major. "He wasn't very enthusiastic about the prospect. He won't talk. He only accepted under the condition that his younger sister be transferred to our private hospital." Misato closed her eyes and sighed, her heart heavy with concern for the boy in her care.
--------------
"How can Misato be so cruel?" Kensuke asked, feeling totally dejected. He was sat at his desk at the high school, head down. Shinji was sat backwards on his chair, looking at his friend. Toji had his feet on his desk and was looking at the strip lights overhead. He hadn't had much sleep the night before and really wasn't in the mood to listen to the bespectacled boy's whining. "I'm dying to pilot, so why won't she use me?" Kensuke continued. "It's just not fair."
"Yeah," Toji replied, sounding depressed. Shinji looked at him, wondering what had happened to his usually lively friend. The sound of the door at the back of class opening made the third-child look at it. Asuka wandered in, closing the door behind her.
"Uh hey, what's up? Y...you left before me, so how come you're only just getting here?" Shinji asked her. She walked past him without saying anything, her emotions in turmoil.
"Ah, no fight between the newlyweds today?" Toji commented, almost back to his usual self. She slammed her bag onto her desk, growling.
"I just didn't want to see your ugly faces!" she snapped. "You damned three...stooges." She sat down and closed her eyes. "Verdamt idiots," she muttered.
From his seat, Shinji watched her. Every instinct he had was telling him to go to her and find out what was going on, to help her any way he could. He wanted to hold her in his arms and drive away the source of her anguish. But if he did, their secret would be out. And he couldn't let that happen. He sighed heavily.
I'll ask her about it tonight, he thought.
--------------
"Ah, the precious moment of lunch time!" Kensuke commented, putting a carrier bag of food on his desk after the bell rang. Shinji was sat facing him, still worried about what was troubling Asuka. Kensuke looked around. "Hey, where's Toji?"
"I haven't seen him," Shinji replied, looking up. His friend looked at him, bemused.
"You mean he left?" the bespectacled boy asked. "Without his lunch? Toji the stomach? That's impossible!"
"Well, he's been acting...differently," Shinji told him, lowering his head again.
--------------
At that moment, Toji Suzuhara was stood on the roof, leaning on the guardrail, staring out over the school grounds.
"Mr. Suzuhara," a female voice said from behind him. He looked, and saw Rei approaching.
"Oh, it's you Ayanami," he replied, sadly. He looked forward, returning his attention to whatever it had been on. "If you're looking for Shinji, he's not here." She walked over and stopped a couple of steps from the railing.
"You know, don't you?" Suzuhara asked her. "About everything?" The first-child nodded. "I think Asuka knows too," Toji told her. "So Shinji's the only one who doesn't know." The boy looked at her from the corner of his eye. "You know, it's pretty rare for you to be concern about someone else," he commented.
"It is?" the blue-haired girl asked. "I'm not sure I understand."
"Oh, you have a thing about Shinji all right," Toji said. Rei looked surprised by what the boy had just said.
"I... Maybe that is true," Rei said, looking out over the grounds. Toji smiled.
"You do," he told her.
--------------
Hikari was looking out the window of class 2A, and could see Toji and Rei on the roof. Her heart sank as she watched them. They seemed to be talking about something.
"Hikari! Let's have lunch together!" one of her friends called. Hikari looked down at the parcel of food in her hands.
"Okay," the class rep replied, holding back the tears she felt welling up within her.
--------------
"It's over two hours late," Misato commented as she stood in front of the transport truck, chewing on a toothpick, "but...at least it's finally here." The transport carrying Unit 03 was landing vertically less than a hundred metres away. "This is the first time I've ever waited for some one this long!"
"That's because you never waited for guys back when you could still get a date," Ritsuko responded, leaning out of the drivers window, mainly to get away from the smell coming from the numerous food packets littering the inside of the cab.
"Oh shut up," Misato replied.
--------------
Toji hadn't gone back to class after lunch had ended. Instead, here he was, he sat against one of the pillars supporting the covered walkway leading to the gym. He had a vacant look on his face as he stared out into space. His mind had drifted back to his first encounter with Shinji Ikari.
----FLASHBACK--------------------------
Toji had been surprised by how hard the boy had hit the ground after he'd thumped him. But it had been satisfying. The boy who had been lead on his back before him was the reason his sister was in the hospital.
"I'm sorry newcomer," Suzuhara had said, rubbing his fist, "but I had to clobber you. I had to beat you to work off my own anger."
----END OF FLASHBACK-------------------
Toji held his fist up in front of him, then opened it, staring at his palm. Am I gonna be the reason for some other kid ending up like my sister? he wondered. He sighed, realising how Shinji must have felt after his first battle. He clenched his fist and stared at it. In the building behind him, the bell for the end of day rang.
--------------
"I'm sorry Asuka," Hikari said as the two walked along the streets of Tokyo-3. "You usually walk home with Shinji, don't you?"
"I only walk with Shinji because we work together," Asuka told her. Well, she thought, that used to be the only reason. She stopped as they reached a bench and sat down. Hikari did the same, and for a few moments the two just sat there, watching the sun set behind the city skyline. The light made all the buildings appear to be golden.
"This is about Toji, isn't it?" Asuka asked her friend, leaning back on the bench, enjoying the view.
"Yeah," Hikari replied, sadly. "How'd you know?"
"Everybody knows," the redhead told her, sitting upright. "The three stooges are the only ones who don't."
"Shinji seems sensitive," Horaki commented, looking at the German, "in a naive kind of way." Asuka caught herself just as she was about to agree.
"Shinji's a big fat dork!" she said quickly. "And he's denser than lead too!" she added, her feet twitching back and forth. "He wouldn't know how to relate to another person if you gave him a manual!"
"Oh. I see," Hikari replied, lowering her head. She'd been caught off-guard by her friend's vehemence. Despite all appearances to the contrary, Hikari was sure that the two pilots liked each other. She'd seen the softness in Asuka's eyes when she'd caught her looking at the boy. And she was sure she'd caught him sneaking looks at the redhead in class.
"Asuka, I think Toji might be interested in Rei," Hikari said. The pilot looked at her as if she'd grown another head.
"Are you kidding?!" the second-child asked. "Toji and Wondergirl?!"
"Well, at the lunch they seemed..."
"Ha!" Asuka said, interrupting her friend. "Don't worry Hikari. It'll never happen," she assured her. "If Shinji is denser than lead, then Rei Ayanami is off the atomic scale."
"Really?" Hikari asked, feeling hope rise within her.
"Yup," Asuka replied, nodding. The class rep smiled, feeling reassured. The German leant towards her. "Can I ask you something?"
"O...okay," Hikari replied, uncertain.
"Just what do you see in a dumb jock like that?" the second-child asked.
"His...compassionate side," Hikari told her, blushing. She smiled and turned way, feeling unaccountably nervous.
"Wha?!" Asuka replied, looking completely stunned and like she was going to fall off the bench. Toji?! Compassionate?! she thought, her mouth hanging open.
--------------
Later that evening, the pilot of Unit 01 sat at a small table in Misato's living room, reading a book. There was a laptop sat on the table, powered up. Asuka was lying on a large cushion, reading a magazine, with numerous others around her. Pen-Pen had fallen asleep on cushion to her left. The television was on, but neither child was paying it any attention.
"Asuka, I was wondering..." the boy started, looking at the German.
"Kaji sure spends a lot of time in the tub," she commented, interrupting him. He looked back at his book.
"I wonder who's going to pilot Unit 03," he said, sighing.
"What?!" Asuka asked, looking at him. "You mean you haven't heard?!"
"Who is it?" Shinji asked her. She looked thoughtful for a moment, then turned away, unable to meet the boy's gaze. "Come on Asuka," he said. "If you know, tell me. Please." The second-child sighed and hung her head.
"Toji's the pilot," she muttered.
"What was that?" the boy asked, unable to hear what she said. The girl turned around so she was facing him.
"I said 'Toji's the pilot'," she informed him. Shinji stared at her. She could tell from the look on his face that he didn't believe her.
"Yeah, that was refreshing," Kaji commented as he opened the door to the living room. He walked in, wearing a green robe and wiping his face on a white towel. "Are you two fighting again?" he asked, noticing the tense atmosphere.
"No!" Asuka replied, looking at him. She sighed. "Kaji, tell him who the fourth-child is." The man frowned.
"You mean to tell me that Misato hasn't told him?" Kaji asked. The redhead nodded. He looked at the boy and sighed. "The name of the fourth-child is Toji Suzuhara," he told Shinji.
"Re...really?!" the third-child stammered. The other two occupants of the room nodded. "But why didn't Misato tell me?" he whined.
"She probably wanted to, but didn't know how to tell you," Kaji assured him. Asuka got up and knelt on the floor next to the boy and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.
"Asuka, what are you..." Shinji started, but the girl put her hand over his mouth to silence him.
"It's all right Shinji," she told him, "Kaji knows."
"You told him?!" the boy asked, pulling away from her.
"Don't be too hard on her," Kaji said. "I figured it out." Shinji looked at him, bemused. Asuka took advantage of the situation and wrapped herself around the boy again. After a moment's hesitation, Shinji relaxed and enjoyed the comfort the girls arm brought him. "And don't worry," Ryoji told the boy, "I'm not going to tell anyone. You two deserve all the happiness you get." The third-child looked at him thoughtfully for a moment, before turning his gaze on the young lady whose arms held him.
Kaji sighed as he saw the look of contentment in the young couple's eyes. For a moment, they rested their foreheads together. The, the pilots got up from the table and walked hand in hand over to the couch. Asuka snuggled up under the boy's arm as they settled on to it, pulling her legs up under herself.
"So is there anything decent on?" Kaji asked as he sat down chair opposite the two children.
--------------
For Shinji Ikari, it had turned out to be an almost perfect evening. He and Asuka had been able to enjoy time together as a couple without fear of being seen. The only thing that could have made it better in the boy's mind was if they had been able to go on an actual date. Still, it had felt like a date. He'd even walked Asuka to her room when it had been decided that they would all to go to bed. And they'd kissed again. It was something the couple hadn't done that often, and every one felt like the most precious gift in the world to the boy.
Not wanting to sleep in Misato's room, it had been decided that Kaji would share Shinji's, with him taking the bed. Kaji had argued against it, not wanting to upset the boy's normal routine, but the third-child had insisted.
"Hey, Kaji, are you asleep yet?" the boy asked after almost five minutes of silence in the darkened room.
"No, not yet," Kaji replied.
"Um, well... What's my father like?" Shinji asked. He'd been debating whether or not to ask that question for sometime.
"Now there's a surprise," the man replied, smiling in the darkness. "I'd have thought you'd ask about Misato."
"It's just..." the third-child started, but trailed off, unsure of how to say what he wanted "It seems like you're always with my father."
"Commander Fuyutski's the one who's always with him," Ryoji told him. He sighed, realising he wasn't going to get any sleep for a while. "Have you been asking around about your father?"
"I just...haven't been around him much," the boy replied.
"So, you really don't know him," Kaji commented.
"But, I...I've learned a lot about him lately," Shinji added. "I...I've learned how he feels about his work, a...about my mother.
"You're wrong Shinji," the man told him. "You only believe that you've learned. But people can't really understand themselves, much less each other. Understanding one hundred percent of anything is...impossible." He rolled on to his back and stared at the dark ceiling. "That's why we spend so much time trying to understand our own motivations and those of others. That's what make life so...interesting."
"So you can't understand Misato, then?" the pilot asked. Kaji turned his head and looked in the direction the voice had come from.
"The Kanji we use for the word 'she' means 'a woman far away', and women will always seem to be on a distant shore," Ryoji related, chuckling slightly. "The gulf between men and women is broader and deeper than any ocean."
"I don't understand adults," Shinji commented from his position on the floor.
"Some of us never do," Kaji muttered. He sighed and turned to face the wall. A few short moments, he heard the child's breathing slow as sleep claimed him. I guess he got the answers he needed, Kaji thought.
--------------
The next morning was bright and sunny at the Nerv Test Facility in Matsushiro. The Evangelion from America was deep inside the facility, secured within the temporary cage that had been constructed for it. Outside, technicians were busy scurrying all over the place, carrying out checks on the systems that would be used.
"T minus 300 minutes to Unit 03 activation test," a female voice announced over the PA system as Misato stood outside the control vehicle they would be using. It was followed by other voices, all of which were unknown to the major, but she paid them no heed. She sighed and entered the vehicle.
"Roger," Ritsuko said as the door closed behind Katsuragi, "team B, commence operation." Misato wandered over to the doctor and crossed her arms.
"Data link to Evangelion Unit 01 established," a male technician announced.
"The systems all up and ready for full activation," Akagi told her friend, as she looked up from the clipboard in her hands at the monitors lining the walls.
"Great! Let's get started," the major said, looking bored.
"Well that was enthusiastic," the blonde commented, looking back down at her clipboard. "You know that Unit 03 will be assigned to you once it's passed its tests, don't you?"
"Exclusive control of four Eva's..." Misato muttered thoughtfully, looking at Ritsuko, slyly. "If you wanted to, you could conquer the world." The doctor gave her friend that spoke volumes.
"Have you told Shinji about the fourth yet?" she asked, returning her attention to her current task.
"No. I'll...tell him after the test," the major replied. Akagi looked at her and sighed.
"The fourth-child has arrived," the female voice announced over the speakers. "Squad 2, begin entry preparations immediately."
--------------
A few moments later, at the high school attended by the pilots, Hikari Horaki was stood by Asuka's desk, a food bundle in her hand.
"Toji hasn't shown up yet Asuka," Hikari commented, looking around her. The German looked at the class rep then rested her head on her hand, looking down at her desk.
"Yeah, he may not come today," the second-child told her. Hikari sighed and lowered her head.
"I thought we might eat together today," she muttered, feeling depressed. A moment later she smiled, and held the package up. "Do you want this?" she asked her friend.
--------------
"Unit 03's already arrived in Japan, hasn't it?" Kensuke Aida asked Shinji as the two stood on the roof, leaning on the guard-rail.
"Uh huh," Shinji replied. "It got here yesterday."
"This sucks!" the bespectacled youth commented. "Who's gonna pilot it then?" Aida hung his head. "Toji was absent today, maybe it's him." Shinji sighed heavily, staring out into space.
--------------
Back at Matsushiro, the entry plug for Evangelion Unit 03 was being inserted as the two spoke. Misato and Ritsuko stood side by side in the command vehicle, watching the process with interest.
"Entry plug secured," a technician announced as the display before him showed it spinning into position.
"Initiating first connection," a female technician added, typing commands into her console. The major looked at one of the overhead monitors. It displayed an image of the Eva's face. The Unit's eye began to glow white.
"Transmitting pulse," the male technician continued. "Graph readout is normal."
"Graph display is within tolerance," a second male voice announced.
"Phase one contact, all clear," a third told the doctor.
"Roger," Ritsuko said. "Operation will proceed to phase two."
"Full nerve link established," the third stated, entering commands into his console. "Harmonics are reading standard. We are now approaching the absolute border." Just as the technicians display showed the progress pass the point marked 'BORDER LINE', a flash caught the major's eye.
What was that? she mused, looking at the overhead display again. It had been brief, but the major could have sworn she saw a red glow coming from the Eva's eyes. Everyone jumped as alarm sirens began sounding, and the lighting switched to the red emergency system.
"Break the nerve circuits!" Dr. Akagi ordered. "Abort the test!" The major watched as the umbilical cable was jettisoned from the back of the unit.
"No!" a second female voice cried as the Eva began to move. "Mission failure! We've got high energy readings in the body," she added, fearing what her instruments were telling her.
"An Angel!" Ritsuko cried in disbelief as she looked at the console before her. Misato watched, transfixed, as white filaments became visible over the entry plug port. "NO!" Akagi cried.
--------------
In the cage, the Eva struggled to free itself from its restraints. After a few moments of effort, it opened it's jaws, and the world around it turned to white.
--------------
Miles away, on the outskirts of Tokyo-3, an old man stopped to rest. He'd been walking for the past twenty minutes, and he was tired. In his youth, he used to run for hours, but now he couldn't even manage a half-hour walk without tiring.
A bright flash caught his eye. Turning his head, he saw a large plume of smoke rise up over the hills in the distance. Years ago, the old man had been a soldier, and as such, he recognised it's cause. An explosion, unmistakably.
--------------
"There's been an explosion at Matsushiro," Shigeru Aoba announced over the blaring sirens. All the personnel manning the command centre were busy trying to figure out what had happened at the test site.
"Damage level unknown," Maya added, trying to pick up a feed from one of the many cameras that had been set up to monitor the activation test.
"Send the rescue squad and third battalion," Kouzou Fuyutski ordered from his position behind them. "We've got to handle this before the self-defence force gets involved."
"Roger," Makato responded, doing so. Aoba looked up from his console after checking the data it was displaying.
"We've got an unidentified object detected at the site," he told the grey-haired commander.
"Its pattern is orange," the bespectacled technician added, calling up the pattern analysis on the main screen. "We can't confirm that it's an Angel yet."
"Go to first stage alert," Gendo Ikari ordered from his post. As usual, he had his chin resting on his hands.
"All personnel go to first stage alert!" a male voice announced over the base intercom.
"Prepare for surface to surface combat," another technician announced.
"All Eva's, prepare for launch," Maya ordered, activating the communications link to the three pilots, who were already inside their units. "Disperse for maximum intercept potential. Air transportation to Matsushiro will go in twenty."
--------------
"There...there's been an accident, at Matsushiro?" Shinji Ikari asked. Evangelion Unit 01 was crouched by the base of Mount Nobe, beside a generator installation. "It...it can't be," he added, refusing to accept what he was being told. "What happened?"
"That is unknown," Rei Ayanami informed him over the voice link. "Contact has yet to be restored."
"But what are we gonna do?" the third-child asked. "We need Misato." A video window appeared to his left. It was Asuka.
"We're gonna have to go for it on our own," she told the boy. Shinji looked at her, and her expression softened, seeing the look of concern on his face. "It's not like we have any other choice, is it?"
"But...who'll give us our orders?" Shinji asked. Another video window appeared, this one to the right of the link to Unit 02. It was Rei
"Commander Ikari will command this operation," the first-child informed him.
"My father will?" Shinji asked, surprised.
--------------
Back at the command centre, Fuyutski was now stood beside Gendo. He looked concerned. Something about the current situation bothered the older man, but he wasn't sure what it was exactly.
"We're receiving an image of the target from the Nobe mountain station," Shigeru announced, interrupting Kouzou's musing. "Transferring to the main monitor." On the main screen, the image of a bend in a road appeared. Evangelion Unit 03 lumbered around the corner. The longhaired technician gasped in shock.
"As we suspected," Fuyutski muttered.
"Transmit the abort signal," Gendo ordered. "Eject the unit's entry plug." Maya typed in the relevant commands.
"It's now working, sir," she reported. "Neither the abort or plug ejection codes are being accepted."
"What about the pilot?" the commander inquired. Makato checked the feed he was receiving.
"His heart's still beating and he's still breathing," he related. He sighed heavily. "But, he's probably..." he trailed off, unwilling to finish his sentence.
"I see," Gendo commented. "Then we must accept the loss of Evangelion Unit 03. Reclassify it as the 13th Angel," he ordered. Shigeru, Maya and Makato turned and looked at him.
"What?!" Maya asked, her voice no more than a whisper.
"But, sir..." Makato started, intending to object.
"Deploy our forces around the base of Mount Nobe," Ikari ordered, ignoring the reactions of his sub-ordinates. "The target must be destroyed!"
--------------
In his cockpit, Shinji had his head down, trying to compose himself for the battle that he was soon to follow.
"Target is approaching," Shigeru informed the pilot's over the comm. link. The boy looked up. The silhouette of a figure was visible against the setting sun.
"All units, prepare to engage," Makato ordered.
"Huh?!" Shinji gasped, sitting upright as he recognised the shape before him. An Eva. "I...it can't be! Is that the Angel?"
"Correct," he fathers voice confirmed. "That is your target."
"It may be our target, but that's Unit 03, isn't it?" Shinji asked.
"Gott en himmel!" the boy heard Asuka gasp over the intercom. "How could it have been possessed?" she asked in a quiet voice.
"Irrelevant," Commander Ikari replied.
"What about the entry plug?" Asuka asked, fearing for the safety of the fourth-child.
"We tried to eject it, but couldn't," Maya informed the pilots.
"You mean he's still in there?!" the second-child asked, shocked.
"It is an Angel," Ikari stated coldly. "It is our enemy. Destroy it."
"No! I won't," Shinji snapped back at his father. "My friend's in that thing."
"You must destroy it!" Gendo replied, his voice colder than ever.
--------------
"Commander! We've lost the link to Unit 01," Makato informed his superior, looking at his console, surprised.
"Re-establish it," Gendo ordered. The bespectacled technician's hands flew over his console as he tried to do so.
"I'm trying," he replied. "But it's being blocked. By the pilot."
--------------
"Asuka, Rei, you've got to help me save Toji!" Shinji told his fellow pilots. "We can't leave him in there!" Ayanami became confused by the state of mind she found herself in.
"You got it!" she heard Asuka reply without a moment's hesitation. The first-child remained silent. Unit 02 left its assigned position and began to make its way to Unit 01.
"Unit 02, return to your position," Rei heard the commander order.
"Stuff it!" Asuka told him. From the sound the first-child then heard, it was apparent that the German had also severed her connection to headquarters, a severe breach of protocol.
"Rei?" the boy asked over the radio.
"We must obey the commander's orders," she stated calmly.
"Screw the commander!" Asuka replied, her voice displaying how angry she felt. "That's our friend in that thing."
"Rei, assist them," Gendo ordered over the link to Evangelion Unit 00.
"Yes sir," she replied quietly, relieved the decision had been made for her.
--------------
"So how do we do this then?" Asuka asked the third-child. He sat silent in his cockpit for a moment, deliberating the problem.
"You and Rei hold it down," he added a few moments later, "and I'll remove the plug."
"Sounds good to me," the redhead replied. "What about you Wondergirl?"
"I assist," Ayanami replied.
"Then lets do it!" Asuka told her.
--------------
Units 00 and 02 charged at the Angel, knocking it down before it could react. Asuka's Eva then grabbed it's arms whilst Rei's grabbed it's legs. Shinji quickly moved his machine over to the prone Angel.
"Hurry it up will ya," Asuka told him over the intercom. "This things hard to keep down."
In his cockpit, Shinji nodded. He moved Unit 01 over the Angel, and pulled away the white filaments surrounding the plug. So the plug did try to eject, he thought as the filaments snapped. The thing beneath him roared and bucked. Ignoring it, he grasped the plug carefully, and began to pull. Although stuck, he felt it begin to move.
"Hold still dammit!" the third-child cursed as Unit 03 struggled even harder to free itself. Asuka and Rei held it down firmly. It may have been able to move, but it couldn't free itself.
"Be careful not to crush it," Asuka grunted at him as she used all her effort to hold down the infested Eva. Shinji didn't respond, concentrating on the task at hand. After the plug had moved about half a metre, it stopped. Looking closely, the boy could see a large number of thick filaments wrapped around it.
"Damn thing," he muttered. If he gripped hard enough to be able rip them, he'd crush the entry plug. A thought occurred to him, and the cover of his right shoulder compartment flipped open. Reaching up, he removed his progressive knife and activated it.
"What are you doing?!" the redhead asked him, shocked to see him draw his blade.
"I'm gonna have to cut it free!" Shinji replied. "Now hold it still," he told her. He lowered the tip of the blade, and began to cut through the filaments. It was difficult, as the progressive knife had not been designed for tasks requiring such precision. He felt himself begin to sweat as he concentrated on moving the blade around the edge of the plug. One by one, he severed the strands.
Reaching with the Eva's left hand, he gently grasped the plug and tugged. It gave a little. But as it moved, more strands became visible. Feeling frustrated, he began to cut again, pulling at the plug all the time. After a short space of time, time that had felt like an eternity to the boy, he had cleared the last of the filaments and withdrew the plug completely.
Suddenly, all three pilots found themselves flying through the air as the Angel roared even louder than before and used it's AT Field to free itself. As Unit 01 hit the ground, the impact jarred the entry plug from its hand, and it flew away, landing next to a deserted building. The force of the landing also knocked the progressive knife from the other hand, and the wind from the pilot.
--------------
Rei cried out as she felt the Angel land on the back of her Eva. It grasped the back of Unit 00's neck, holding it down. As she struggled to free herself, she felt a sudden searing pain in her left shoulder and cried out, grasping it. Outside, a viscous pink liquid was dripping from the Angel onto the Eva.
--------------
"The Angel is merging itself into Unit 00's arm," Maya cried as she read the report she was receiving from the battlefield. "Nerve contamination spreading."
"Sever the left arm immediately," Commander Ikari told her.
"But the pilot's nerve connections are still active," Maya objected.
"Cut it off!" he ordered, forcefully, in a voice that frightened the lieutenant.
"Right," she replied quietly, transmitting the appropriate code to the Eva.
--------------
In her cockpit, the first-child threw back her head and screamed in agony as the left arm of her Eva was explosively jettisoned from its body. The arm flew through the air, and smashed the building the entry plug had landed next to, causing it to bounce further away. Rei struggled to look upwards, and saw the infested Unit 03 stand up and walk away from her.
"Unit 00 is heavily damaged," she heard Lieutenant Ibuki say over the audio link to headquarters, obviously informing the commander. "The pilot is wounded."
--------------
Shinji shook his head to clear it as he fought he way back to consciousness. Slowly, the blackness that he could see was replaced by the view of the interior of his entry plug. The sounds of battle began to fill his ears. Looking around, he saw Unit 00 on the ground. He was about to call out to Rei when a piercing scream froze his heart.
"Asuka?" he cried, recognising her voice. "Asuka?!" Searching frantically around him, he saw Unit 02 lead on the ground, its head on the crushed remains of a lorry. "YOU BASTARD!" he screamed at the Angel, and charged at it.
--------------
"Unit 02 has ceased transmitting," Makato informed commanders Fuyutski and Ikari as the data link that he'd managed to establish fell silent.
"The pilot's ejected," Maya added. "Recovery teams are moving in for retrieval."
"What's the status of Unit 01?" Ikari asked.
"The pilot has regained consciousness," Makato replied, checking his console, "and is..."
"YOU BASTARD!" Shinji cried, his words ringing through the command centre as the audio link to Eva 01 reopened.
"Oh my God!" Shigeru cried, scarcely believing what the feed from the Mount Nobe station. "He's charging the Angel!"
"What?!" Fuyutski demanded, leaning on Ikari's desk. Shigeru Aoba transferred the image to the main screen, just as Unit 01 smashed into the Angel. The impact caused the two to hit the ground several metres from where the Angel had stood. "My God!" Kouzou gasped as he watched the Eva get to its feet.
--------------
From his cockpit, Shinji stared at Unit 03 as it lay on its back, his rage driving him in a way he had never known. He watched the Eva for any sign of movement, ready to attack it. Before he could react, the Eva raised its right arm, which stretched forward and its hand wrapped itself around Unit 01's throat. Shinji felt the pressure of the grip being transferred to his own neck and struggled for breath. The left hand quickly joined the right.
He raised Unit 01's hands and tried to prise the Angel's grasp away. The possessed Unit 03 got to its feet, and slammed the purple Eva into the hillside. As he struggled to breathe, the third-child spotted something familiar nearby. It was his progressive knife. He reached for it, but the Eva's fingers were just short. By force of will, he was able to make Unit 01 shift a little, enabling its fingers to touch the end of the handle. Stretching the hand out as far as he could, he was able to paw the knife close enough to grasp it, and thrust it with all the strength he had left into the body of Unit 03.
The Angel threw back its head and howled as the vibrating blade sank into its torso. Feeling the grip on his neck loosen, Shinji twisted the blade, enlarging the wound. The sound coming from the Eva above him made him cringe, but the hands around Unit 01's throat loosened sufficiently for him to fill his burning lungs. He released the progressive knife, and seized the Angel's wrists, squeezing them as hard as he could, breaking its grasp.
He moved the hands from the vicinity of the purple Eva's neck, fighting against the Angels as it struggled to free itself from his clutches. A roar rose from the pit of his stomach as he lifted Unit 01's left leg, put it against Unit 03's chest and pushed as hard as he could. The Angel was sent flying backwards. His grip on its right wrist slipped due to the dirt on the Eva's hand from reaching for the progressive knife, but his left hand held, and the forearm of the infected Eva ripped apart, leaving a bloody stump in his hand. He threw it to the ground at got to his feet.
--------------
"Sir! Shinji's synch-ratio just jumped twenty points!" Maya cried out, reading the data her console displayed.
"Impossible!" Fuyutski shouted back at her. From his seat, the commander of Nerv merely smiled, watching the battle unfold on the main screen.
"The Magi have confirmed," Maya replied. "And it's still increasing!"
"What is the pilot's current ratio?" Gendo asked calmly.
"Eighty six percent," Maya replied, checking her console. "Ninety one. Ninety four. Ninety seven," she related, reading off the figures as fast as they appeared on her display. "It's stopped. Ninety eight point zero seven percent."
"Interesting," Ikari commented, absorbing the data.
--------------
Back at Mount Nobe, Shinji shoulder barged the Angel, knocking it to the floor. Leaning over it, he sank Unit 01's hand into the wound the progressive knife had caused, causing the creature to scream in pain. Gripping the edge of the laceration, he pulled, ripping away a large section of the Eva's armour from the lower torso. Flinging it away, he grabbed the other side of the wound and did the same. As he reached for the gapping wound again, Shinji found himself flying backwards as the Angel used its AT Field to free itself once more.
He cried out as the back of Unit 01 slammed against the side of the mountain and the force of the impact was passed to his own. The Eva staggered to its feet and lumbered towards the Angel, which was now upright. In a sudden move, it flung its right arm out, grasped the purple Eva's umbilical cable and pulled it. Realising its intent, the third-child quickly jettisoned the cable from the Eva's back.
--------------
"Unit 01 has switched to reserve power," Shigeru announced. "Five minutes remaining in the internal batteries."
"I believe that will be sufficient," Gendo Ikari said. As he had watched the battle, he had felt a pride for his son that he had never known before. "Is there any change in the pilot's synch-ratio?"
"Negative," Maya reported, checking her figures. "It's holding steady and ninety eight point zero seven." A loud crash made the eyes of all those present in the command centre look at the main screen. Unit 03 was once more lead on the floor. Shinji's Eva stood over it, and kicked it, sending it flying.
--------------
Shinji quickly closed the distance between the Eva's and bent over the prone Angel. Balling up his unit's fists, he smashed them repeatedly into the face of his enemy. Over and over he punched it, until the armour on the head began to fall away. Then he reached as deep as he could into the hole in the Angel's torso, grabbed a hold of whatever he could find, and yanked it out as hard as he could.
--------------
Maya gasped, and averted her eyes, unwilling to witness the carnage unfolding on the command centre's main display. Everyone else's attention remained on the battle, hypnotised by what they saw.
"Thir...thirty seconds of activation remaining," Shigeru somehow managed to say, as shocked as everyone else.
--------------
His rage higher than ever, Shinji stood his Evangelion up, lifted its right leg and held it over the Angel's head. After a moment's hesitation, he brought the foot down as hard as he could, crushing the cranial framework of Evangelion Unit 03. Its head exploded, sending pieces of tissue flying.
Shinji sat in his cockpit gasping for air as the power failed and the Eva shut down around him. Despite the presence of the LCL, he could feel the tears that ran from his eyes, tears of great sadness.
--------------
"Activation terminated," Makato announced quietly as the emergency batteries exhausted their energy. He looked down at his console, and forced back the bile that had risen in his throat. I didn't think Shinji had that in him! he thought, still in shock over what he had just witnessed.
"Impressive," Ikari commented, pleased by what had occurred. Fuyutski looked at him in shock.
"Impressive?!" he asked, startled by his superior's remark. "You find that impressive?!" he demanded, gesturing to the main display. He knew that the commander had little respect for the pilots, but Kouzou had had no idea the man could be so callous, especially towards his own son.
"Indeed," Gendo responded. "He show great promise," he added. He got up from his desk and began to walk to the door. "Fuyutski, take care of this," he said as the door slid open in front of him.
--------------
Hikari Horaki hummed softly to herself as she looked through the recipe book in her hands. She was stood in the kitchen of the house she shared with her sisters and sighed as she read the details of each one.
"Now which should I cook for Kodama, Nozomi and myself," she muttered quietly. "But these all serve four," she added, looking upwards. "I sure hope he's hungry tomorrow."
--------------
As consciousness returned to Major Katsuragi, her head felt like it was going to explode and there was a terrible ache coming from her left arm. She forced her eyes open and blinked several times as they refused to focus. As they did, she became aware of the sounds of the rescue operation that was going on around her.
"Am...I alive?" she murmured feeling a bandage on her cheek stretch as she moved her jaw. Moving her eyes, she saw that her left arm was bandaged. That explains the ache, she thought, guessing that it was broken, or at least fractured. "Kaji?" she asked, noticing he was sat next to her.
"You were lucky...Katsuragi," he told her, looking relieved that she was awake.
"Ritsuko...where is she?" Misato asked, recalling that her friend had been with her. She couldn't at that moment remember exactly what had happened however.
"Don't worry," Ryoji told her. "She wasn't hurt as bad as you."
"Oh. Good," the major replied, relaxing a little. Suddenly, her mind was filled with images as her memory of what had transpired returned. "Wha...what about Eva 03?" she gasped.
"It was destroyed," he informed her, "as an Angel...by Unit 01." Misato turned her head away from him, her heart sinking.
"I...I never told Shinji..." she muttered, barely holding back the tears.
"Don't worry," Kaji said, making her look back at him. "He knew. And he saved his friend."
"H...how did he f...find out?" the major asked, relief colouring her voice.
"I told him," Ryoji replied. It wasn't exactly the truth, but close enough. "I guess you could just never find the right moment," he added.
"How...how's the pilot?" Katsuragi asked. She had to know.
"I'm not sure," Kaji told her. "He was airlifted to the infirmary."
"Oh God," Misato muttered, closing her eyes.
"Shh," he told her, stroking her uninjured cheek. "Everything's gonna be okay. Just take it easy."
--------------
Shinji looked up as he heard someone approach. He was sat with his back to Unit 01, a towel wrapped around him. The rescue operation was going on behind him, beyond the Eva, but he couldn't face it. The tears had stopped flowing, but the sadness refused to leave his heart. Looking up, he saw that it was Asuka. She walked over to him and crouched in front of him.
"How are you feeling Shinji?" she asked softly, a look of genuine concern on her face. He sniffed and blinked before speaking, trying to compose his thoughts. It was clear to her that he had been crying, the tears still staining his face.
"Confused," the third-child told her, dropping his head. "I just... I can't seem to..."
"Shh. It's okay," the redhead told him, putting her hand over his mouth to silence him. "Do you want to be alone for a while?" she asked. He shook his head.
"Please stay," he replied, sounding tearful. She moved her hand from his mouth to his cheek, then ran it through his hair. He looked up at her, surprised by her tenderness. "Asuka, what are you..."
"It's okay Shinji," she said, interrupting him. "Everyone's kinda busy. They're not going to look for us for a while," she related. She leaned forward and kissed his forehead gently. He looked at her, and she could clearly see the need for companionship in his eyes. She smiled tenderly at him and sat beside him, leaning against him. Surprising her, Shinji wrapped the towel around her, draping his arm across her shoulder as he did so. The German leant her head against the boy's, allowing the contact to reassure them both that they were still alive.
To be continued...
Next Chapter -
Another Angel, and Unit 01 receives an upgrade.
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Well, what do you think? Please contact me with your comments. I'll try to answer any questions in the author notes for the next chapter.
If you want to discuss something with me, please send me an e-mail. My address is CEO_Room3@Hotmail.com. I'll do my best to respond to all correspondence.
I'll try to get the next chapter out as soon as possible, but it could take awhile. Please be patient.
Here's chapter three and, as promised, there are greater changes than before. I hope you guys approve. This part takes the place of episodes seventeen and eighteen.
Also, here's a little challenge for you. I've already got the ending all planned out, but I want to hear how YOU think it's going to end. Tell me what you think. Who knows, you might surprise me and guess correctly. And by that, I'm not attempting to insult your intelligence, and just think my ending will come as something of a shock.
Disclaimer -
All the characters contained in this story are copyright GAINAX, Project EVA, Movic, and any other company and/or division associated with the creation and/or production of Neon Genesis Evangelion. A.D.Vision holds the copyrights to the translated version of Neon Genesis Evangelion. All characters are used WITHOUT the permission of the aforementioned institutions.
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IMPACT
A sequel to "A Question Of..."
By Room3
Chapter 03 - "The Fourth"
Asuka shot bolt upright as she awoke, trembling in fear. She sobbed and wrapped her arms around her, trying blot out the horrific images that had plagued her. She had had the same nightmare for the past three nights. Breathing heavily, she wiped the sweat from her knotted brow and tried to force herself to relax, but the images continued to fill her mind. Again and again she saw the purple Evangelion slowly sinking into the darkness of the Angel; she heard Shinji scream in terror as it did so.
"Mein Gott," she whispered between the sobs that wracked her young body, "why now?" Yes she'd been terrified of loosing Shinji when the Angel had swallowed him and Unit 01, but why did those memories haunt her nights. She'd thought she'd made peace with that, but perhaps she was still feeling guilty over the part she had played in the events. But she had only been trying to help the boy, help increase his confidence.
Confidence, that was the crux of the matter. Whether she had played a part in it or not, the third-child had become over-confident and had paid the price. Since that moment, his confidence had dropped to an all time low. And that, when she stopped fighting it, was what the girl felt guilty for; that she had done more harm than good to the boy she loved. It was a bitter pill for her to swallow, but swallow it she must. Or she would never have another night of uninterrupted sleep.
She lay back down and pulled the covers under her chin. She'd stopped shaking and breathing hard, but she still felt awful. Slowly though, she was able to clear her mind and relax. Eventually, sleep claimed her.
--------------
Major Katsuragi tried not to fidget as she stood in the illuminated circle. She knew that the dark room was only a projection, but she still felt nervous. She knew the committee were not pleased with her, but she was sure she had made the correct decision.
"Major Katsuragi, you still refuse to allow us to question the only person who was directly in this incident?" Chairman Keele asked, his voice echoing through the room. "The pilot of Unit 01."
"Yes sir," the major replied, steeling herself for the backlash she expected to follow. "It is my belief that he is still emotionally unstable at present, and that bringing him here would be very unwise at the moment."
"Then as his proxy," another voice asked, one she didn't know, "let us ask you Major Katsuragi..."
"Did the Angel's attempt communication with a human being?" yet another asked.
"After reading his report, I could find no concrete evidence to validate that theory," she informed them. "In all likelihood this irregularity in simply an odd coincidence."
"If the subject's memory is correct," a third unknown commented.
"There was evidence that his memory had been tampered with," Misato replied, feeling a need to protect the boy.
"But the Eva's AC recorder was not functioning," the third added. "There is no way to confirm it."
"Was the Angel interested in the human mind?" a fourth asked.
"I cannot answer that question sir," the major said. "Whether the Angel's even have a concept of what the human mind is, or whether they can understand our thought-patterns is completely unknown."
"A new factor has been revealed in this incident, in that the Angel tried to take Eva into itself," the first of the unknown voices said. "Is there any possibility that this aspect may be linked to the predicted thirteenth Angel, and all Angel's there after?"
"Based what we have observed, there appears to be no organisation among the Angels," she answered.
"Correct," the second said. "They have worked independently thus far."
"What do you mean sir?" the major asked, puzzled.
"You may not ask questions," Keele told her.
"Understood," she replied.
"That will be all," the chairman informed her. "Dismissed."
"Yes sir." There was a sound of something being turned off and the image of the major disappeared.
"Well, what do you think Ikari?" Keele asked. An image of the commander appeared in the room. He was sat at his desk, fingers interlocked in his usual pose.
"The Angel's appear to be getting more intelligent," he commented. "There's not much time left."
"Left for us, you mean?" the chairman asked. He received no answer.
--------------
A short time later, at the Tokyo-3 general hospital, a newly transferred nurse was speaking with two of her new colleagues.
"Who's the patient in room 12?" she asked.
"That's the emergency-room patient, from the first Eva incident," another replied. "She's been her for a long time."
"Her injuries are really complicated," the head nurse informed the new arrival.
"Poor girl," the second nurse commented. "And she's still elementary school."
"He's here again today?" the first asked, seeing Toji Suzuhara walk by the office three were sat in.
"Yeah," the head nurse replied, watching him go. "He comes to see her at least twice a week. He's a good brother, thinking about his sister like that."
"Yeah. Boys like that are pretty rare," the second replied, thinking of her own troublesome siblings. Down the corridor, Toji knocked on the door of room 12 and went in.
--------------
At the same time, Commander Ikari and Rei Ayanami were riding on one of the many moving walkways inside Nerv headquarters. It was still early, but Ikari didn't sleep much these days, and Rei had been asked to come in early.
"Rei, are things satisfactory?" Gendo asked the girl, without looking back at her.
"Yes," the first-child replied. "I will be with Dr. Akagi all day tomorrow and the day after that I will be in school." She looked at his back as she spoke.
"And how is school?"
"No problems sir."
"I see. That's good," the commander commented.
--------------
"Class attention," Hikari Horaki called a few hours later, as the teacher entered the classroom. There was a clatter of feet as the student body stood up. "Okay, sit down."
"Well, Ayanami is absent as usual, and so's Mr. Aida," the teacher commented, holding up the register. "Professor Koike is..."
"Hey, what's up with Kensuke?" Shinji asked Toji, who had his feet up on his desk and his arms behind his head. A girl at the back of the class looked less than impressed.
"He's in New Yokosuka to see some dumb battleship," Suzuhara replied. "A ship called Myoko or something like that is in port."
"Mr. Suzuhara," the teacher said, raising his voice. Toji reacted by jumping to his feet.
"Y...yes sir!" he answered, not wanting to get into any more trouble than he already had this month. Shinji quickly looked forward, cringing.
"Will you deliver this document to Miss Ayanami after school?" the teacher asked Toji.
"Yes sir," the boy replied.
--------------
Later that day, everyone present in the Command Centre jumped when alarms started blaring. A few moments of frenzied activity revealed what had triggered the alarms.
"The first branch is still okay?" Makato asked. He was speaking to someone on the phone. "No, no, don't bother. The data from the recon. sat is still being confirmed by the Magi."
"Right," Shigeru said in response to something said over the phone he held. With the call ended, the longhaired technician quickly dialled another number.
--------------
"It disappeared?!" Fuyutski asked, having a hard time believing what he was being told. "The entire second branch just vanished?!" Despite what he heard his companion say, Commander Ikari didn't seem to react.
"Yes sir," Shigeru replied over the phone. "It's been confirmed. It's been wiped off the map."
--------------
"Uh...oh my God!" Misato muttered as she was apprised of the situation. The word 'VANISHED' was repeated over and over on the giant screen at her feet.
"Ad-sec and In-sec are going crazy," Makato told her, from his position on the far side of the screen. "General Affairs is total chaos."
"What do you think...happened over there?" Misato asked. An image of a large crater appeared on the screen.
"It's under investigation," Ritsuko told her friend. The doctor was stood on the major's right. "Our only clues are these recon photo's from the geo-synchronous satellite." The image appeared to rewind itself. "There's nothing else left," Akagi informed her. The image stopped rewinding, and a countdown appeared in the bottom left corner.
"Ten seconds..." the automated voice announced as the playback began. "Nine... Eight... Seven... Six... Five... Four... Three... Two... One... Contact." There was a flash, and what appeared to be a shock wave began to spread outwards from the centre of the image. A red glow followed the wave. As the timer in the corner reached +6, the image was replaced by static.
"This is horrible," Misato commented, finding nothing else to say. She had been rendered almost speechless but what she had just witnessed.
"Evangelion Unit 04, its support group and all the other facilities within an 89 kilometre radius were completely destroyed," Maya Ibuki announced. She was stood to the major's right, along one of the sides.
"Along with thousands of people," Dr. Akagi added. Shigeru held up the clipboard he was holding.
"Looking at the time schedule, it would appear that they were in the middle of installing the experimental S2 unit from Germany," he informed the others. He was stood opposite Maya.
"Potential causes range from insufficient structural integrity to an error in calculation during the preliminary design stage," Maya announced. "That's 32,768 possibilities."
"And that's not mentioning sabotage," Misato added.
"But...it wasn't really an explosion, was it?" Makato asked. "Is just disappeared."
"In all probability, they were swallowed by a Dirac sea, just as Unit 01 was," the doctor replied.
"Then the restored S2 engine is..." Misato began.
"Gone," Ritsuko finished. "Along with our hopes."
"We're being forced to use things we don't understand," Katsuragi said, her voice full of scorn.
Yes, Ritsuko thought, narrowing her eyes. Things like the Eva's.
--------------
"So what's happening with Unit 03?" Misato asked Dr. Akagi as the pair of them rode one of the many escalators a short time later.
"It's being shipped here as we speak," Ritsuko informed the major. "The US government doesn't want to risk loosing their first branch as well."
"But they insisted on the rights to build Units 03 and 04 in the first place!" Misato exclaimed, annoyed by the American government's attitude. "And now they're forcing it off on us? Talk about pushing it!"
"Well, you can't blame them, can you?" the blonde doctor asked. "After a disaster like that, anyone would get nervous. We'll handle it."
"What about the test activation?" Katsuragi enquired. "How are you gonna handle that? Will you use Rei's dummy plug?"
"I'll decide soon," Ritsuko replied, sighing. She didn't want to tell Misato about the reservations she had about the dummy plug. She stepped off the escalator and headed for the meeting she now had to attend, organising her thoughts as she walked. The commander had requested an update on the progress of the dummy system, and the doctor was unsure how he would react to what she had to say.
--------------
"This is the dummy plug prototype," Ritsuko informed Commander Ikari, gesturing to the large red cylinder suspended from the ceiling. She voice echoed around the large chamber. Gendo cast a look over the prototype, which looked almost identical to a standard entry-plug.
"Rei's personal data has been transferred into it," she continued, "but our current technology can't really digitise a human mind and soul. In the end, this is nothing but a pale duplication that emulates the real pilot's thinking processes. It's still only a machine."
"It transmits a signal pattern to the Eva. If the Eva believes there is a pilot, and synchronises, then that's good enough," Ikari told her, considering her words. "Load the data into Unit's 01 and 02."
"But we're still working out the bugs, sir," the doctor told her superior.
"Just do it," the commander ordered. "It's sufficient."
"Yes sir." Ikari looked away from the ceiling and began to leave the chamber. Ritsuko followed him, knowing where he was headed.
--------------
"I've delegated the transport of the unit to the UN," the commander stated a short time later. The two were now deep in Nerv headquarters, in Terminal Dogma. "It will be here by the end of the weekend. At that time, you will take of it."
"Yes sir," the doctor replied, looking at the first-child, who was floating within the tube before them. "We'll perform the modifications and activation test in Matsushiro," she informed Ikari, as she looked at the girl. Rei's eyes were closed and she appeared peaceful.
"Hmm. And the test pilot?" Gendo asked.
"Use of the dummy plug is not recommended," Ritsuko answered. "One of our candidates..."
"Will be chosen as the fourth," he finished for her.
"Yes sir," she responded. "There is one child available whose core can be prepared immediately," she added after a moments thought.
"Then make it so."
"Yes sir."
"Rei," Gendo said, raising his voice, "we're finished now." The first-child opened her eyes and smiled.
"Right," she replied, her voice muffled by the liquid in the tube.
"Let's eat," Ikari said, appearing cheerful.
"Yes sir," Ayanami replied. Ritsuko looked on, unhappy at the attention the commander was showing the girl.
--------------
"Yeah! Lunch time at last!" Toji cried as he dumped a large pile of food on his desk. "My very favourite part of the entire school day."
"WHAT?!" Asuka cried, causing him to look in the direction her screech had come from. She was stood over Shinji's desk, leaning towards him menacingly. "Why haven't you made our lunches?" she demanded. Shinji shrunk away from her.
"I...I didn't have a chance to cook. I was too busy," the third-child told her.
"Oh you were, were you?" the second-child asked, looking pretty pissed off to Toji. "And because of that, I'm gonna have to go hungry?!"
"I'm sorry," Shinji replied, cowering from her.
"Uh oh," he said aloud. "The newly-weds are fighting!" The classroom erupted into laughter at the expense of the two pilots, who blushed.
"Oh shut up!" both Shinji and Asuka exclaimed in unison. Asuka stalked back to her seat, and slumped down in it, crossing her arms. She appeared to be fuming, but inside, she was elated.
My plan worked to perfection, she thought. I can afford to go hungry if it helps us keep our little secret. Her mind drifted back to the events of that morning.
----FLASHBACK--------------------------
That morning, Misato had gone to work early. She hadn't told the two pilots why though, which was a little unusual. Asuka hadn't minded being woken early by the major stumbling around the apartment, trying to be quiet. It had given her and Shinji a chance to spend some quality time together.
They'd spent almost an hour watching television, sat close to each other. Shinji had surprised her when he'd put his arm around her shoulders, but there was no way she would've complained. Despite what she had thought, she luxuriated in the casual contact the two allowed themselves when they were alone.
After the programme they had been watching had ended, Asuka had decided to surprise him. She had pulled away from him, and looked at him. Just as he had been about to say something, the German had planted a kiss on his mouth, silencing him. Breaking the kiss after a few moments, she had got up and gone to her room to get ready for school.
It had been while she had been getting changed, that the idea had come to her. She'd been thinking about the conversation she'd had with Kaji before the last Angel had appeared, and she'd realised that she and Shinji had been acting differently towards each other in public. It was then that she had decided that something had to be done before anyone else figured it out.
--------------
When she'd gone back into the living room, the object of her affections was sat on the couch, looking out the window. Hearing her come in, Shinji had stood up, smiling at her. She had returned his smile and had walked over to him. After dropping her school bag to the floor, she had pulled the boy into her embrace. Asuka had sighed as she'd felt his arms wrap around her.
"I love you Shinji," she had said, contentedly, her head resting on his shoulder. It had taken him a few moments to respond.
"And I love you Asuka," the boy had told her.
"I know you do," the girl had replied, breaking their embrace. "I see it in your eyes when you look at me," she'd commented. "And that's the problem."
"What do you mean?" Shinji had asked, obviously worried. The redhead looked into his eyes before answering.
"We've been acting differently around each other recently," she'd replied, "in public, I mean." The Japanese boy had frowned, clearly not understanding what she was getting at. "We haven't fought for weeks."
"But I don't want to fight with you," Shinji had informed her. She'd smiled back at him.
"I don't either," Asuka had assured him, "but if we're gonna keep us a secret, we might need to stage one." It had been a long few seconds before the boy had responded.
"But what about?" he'd asked, accepting the need.
"Good point," the German had answered. "It needs to be a good one." She'd paused for a short time while she thought of something. "I know. You forget to do our lunches."
"I'd never forget that," Shinji had told her.
"Then you were too busy."
"S...sounds good," the boy had replied, a little tentative.
"Okay. I confront you at lunchtime," she had told Shinji, getting caught up in her scheme. "I'll make it loud, so the whole class hears. Which is just how I would've done it before we hooked up," she had added, flashing Shinji a smile. "You say you were too busy. I complain. You apologise. That should do the trick."
"Yeah. I think it will. But what about lunch?" he'd asked, catching her off-guard. "Won't you be hungry?"
"Yeah, I will," she had replied, sighing. "I know, I'll make us a big breakfast, and when we get home we can stuff ourselves!"
"Sounds like a plan to me."
"Good," the German had commented. "Then I'll get started with breakfast," she'd added, heading for the kitchen.
"Do you want a hand?" Shinji had called after her.
"I'll call if I do," she'd answered from the doorway. It had taken her a good half an hour to make their breakfast, even with Shinji's help. They'd eaten in silence, stealing looks at each other and smiling a lot.
----END OF FLASHBACK-------------------
A thought suddenly occurred to the German. I'll have to go see Kaji, and soon, she mused, realising she hadn't made the only other person who knew about the relationship between her and Shinji promise to keep it a secret.
--------------
"Why so glum?" Misato asked Ritsuko as she perched on the edge of the desk in the latter's office. Dr. Akagi was busy typing up the schedule for the Unit 03 modifications and activation test.
"Ah...well... It's the Unit 03 activation test. We'll be using the fourth as the test pilot," the doctor informed her friend.
"The fourth?" Katsuragi asked, looking up. "You mean the fourth-child's been found? When?" she inquired, looking at the blonde-haired lady.
"Yesterday," Ritsuko answered.
"What about the report from the Marduk Institute?" Misato asked, suspicious. "I haven't received it yet."
"Don't worry Major," Akagi assured her. "You'll get your report."
"You're not hiding something, are you Ritsuko?" the major asked, looking away and sighing.
"No, of course not," her friend replied.
"Well, okay," Major Katsuragi replied absently. She stood up and moved so she was stood behind the doctor, looking at the computer screen. "So who's the kid?" Dr. Akagi called up the pertinent file and Misato gasped as she recognised the chosen fourth-child's name. "You're kidding!" the major gasped. "Him?!"
"Yes, well, the prospective candidates have to be kept together for their own protection," Ritsuko informed the major. "It can't be helped." Misato straightened up and folded her arms.
"I...I don't know how I'm going to tell them," she said, deep in thought. "Rei will be fine with it. Asuka'll be pissed, but she'll accept it. But Shinji..." she trailed off, closing her arms. "He's had it so rough. This'll be hardest on him."
"I know. But gathering children of this kind is an imperative," the doctor replied. She understood Misato's misgivings, but there was no other choice. "It's for the sake of our own survival. You shouldn't..."
"Shouldn't complicate things?" the major asked, looking at Ritsuko. She sighed. "Of course."
--------------
"Class dismissed," Hikari announced as the bell signalling the end of the school day sounded. "Bye. See you later." She responded absently to the farewells of her classmates as she made her way to Toji's desk.
"Hey, don't forget you've got bulletin duty this week Suzuhara," she told the boy as he packed his stuff away. Toji looked at her blankly.
"I've got what?" he asked, puzzled. The class rep held a collection of papers in front of his face.
"The class bulletin, remember?" Hikari asked. The boy took the pile from her. "You're supposed to deliver this to Miss Ayanami."
"Ah, come on," he complained, trying to worm his way out of it. "Who else has duty?"
"It's you and Ayanami this week," the girl informed him. Suzuhara slung his bag over his shoulder.
"It's Ayanami and me?!" he exclaimed. "Then I guess I got it, huh," he added, realising there was no getting out of it. He looked at the papers in his hand thoughtfully. "But I can't go to some girl's place by myself," he muttered. A smile appeared on the face of the girl stood in front of him.
"Ah, I could go with you..." Hikari started saying, but the boy cut her off.
"Hey! Shinji!" he called, looking past her. Her face dropped, and she stepped to one side to follow his look. She spotted Shinji as he stood in the doorway, looking at Toji. "Walk home with me, will ya?" Suzuhara asked, walking towards the door. "You know where Ayanami lives, right?"
Hikari stood and watched him go, one hand held out in front of her. She lowered her head as she felt her heart sink. As the classroom door slid shut and groan of disappointment escaped her. She dropped her hand and hung her head even lower, fighting what felt like bitterness rising within her.
--------------
Shinji and Toji stood in the corridor outside Rei's apartment. The third-child reached over and pressed the buzzer on the intercom. When there was no response after several seconds, he pushed the button again. Still no reply.
"Hey, Rei. I'm coming in," Shinji called, taking hold of the door handle.
"Hey, you can't enter a girl's place without her permission," Toji told him, grabbing his arm to stop him.
"It's not like we have a choice," Ikari replied, looking at his friend. "She won't see it if we leave it here," he added, gesturing to the overflowing mailbox. Suzuhara looked uncertain, but he made no attempt to stop Shinji as the latter opened the door.
"Uh... Is anybody home?" he called, looking through the open door. When there was no response, the two boys went inside, leaving their shoes by the door.
"My God! This is a girl's room?!" Toji cried as he took in the condition of Ayanami's dwelling. "It's so...decrepit." The bed was unmade, and there were piles of rubbish by the head of it, and by the refrigerator. A glint of light caught the taller boy's eye, and he looked over at the chest of drawers as Shinji walked over to the bed. The glint had come from a pair of cracked glasses lying on top.
Who the heck are those? he wondered. He knew that Rei didn't wear spectacles. A rustling sound interrupted his musings. Looking over, he saw Shinji kneeling by the bed, picking up the rubbish.
"You shouldn't touch anything! She'll get pissed," Toji told the third-child.
"I'm just cleaning up," Shinji replied.
"Well... I won't help you do it," Suzuhara told him, turning away and folding his arms. "It's just not manly."
"No one asked you to," the third-child responded. "But, you know, Misato hates guys like that."
"I don't care!" Toji replied through gritted teeth. "It's my policy, all right?" Ikari just looked at him, smiling. Having picked up all the rubbish by the bed, he walked over to the fridge, and started cleaning there too. Toji grabbed the single chair in the room and sat on it backwards, his arms resting on the backrest.
"You know, now that I think about it... You've changed," he commented.
"What?" Shinji asked, stopping what he was doing. Have I? he thought. Maybe I have. Asuka would know. The third-child looked at his friend.
"The first time I saw you, I really thought you were the world's biggest jerk," Toji related. "I mean... You sure didn't seem like someone who'd do something for someone else back then." The boy looked up at the ceiling. "Ha, I guess you were so deep in your shell that I couldn't see the real you." Shinji looked at the floor, considering his friend's words.
The sound of the door opening made them both turn and look as Rei entered he apartment. She walked into the room puzzled by their presence, but apparently unfazed.
"Err, hi," Toji said as she passed him, raising one hand in greeting. "Excuse us," he added.
"What for?" Ayanami asked, looking at him blankly.
"We, err, bought you your school bulletins," he answered, pointing at the pile of papers on her bed. She looked at them, and was surprised when see noticed that the rubbish by her bed missing.
"I'm sorry," Shinji said, noticing her expression. The first-child looked at him. "I cleaned up a little," he told her. "It was just trash, right?" he asked, holding up the filled bag.
"Uh... Thank you," Rei said, blushing.
"Well, we gotta go," Toji said, getting to his feet. He grabbed his schoolbag from the floor and gestured for Shinji to follow.
"I, uh, don't know where you put your rubbish," Shinji told the girl. He tied the bag up. "I'll leave it here, if that's all right," he added, putting it beside the fridge. Rei nodded and he picked up his bag and left. "See you tomorrow," he called as he closed her door.
"Man, you Eva pilots sure are a bunch of wackos, huh?" Toji commented as the two boys stepped back out onto the street.
--------------
Back in her apartment, Rei had drawn the curtains and was lead face down on her now made bed. Her chin was resting on her pillow and her arms were crossed in front of her face.
Thank you, she thought. Words of gratitude. Words I've never used before. Not even with him. She sat up and looked at the glasses on the chest of drawers.
--------------
Commander's Fuyutski and Ikari rode the Nerv monorail to headquarters as the sun began to set later that day. Both men were looking out the window, at the city as it passed them by. Kouzou Fuyutski was struck by how beautiful it was, but he doubted his companion was thinking along those lines.
"The City," he said. "A paradise made by mankind."
"Driven from paradise, man escapes to this earthly existence on the edge of death," Gendo responded. "Created by the weakest of beings; created by the sapience born from that weakness, this paradise is our creation."
"To protect ourselves from the fear death instils," Fuyutski replied, beginning to enjoy this discussion, "to satiate our beings with pleasure, we created a paradise by and of ourselves. The city is surely such a paradise. The city designed and built to protect us."
"A city for those who run in fear from the outside world," Ikari told him, his voice full of scorn. "A world of our enemies." The monorail entered a tunnel, and began its descent through the Geo Front. A moment later, the lights in the car came on.
"Of course, cowards do tend to live longer. That's one benefit," Fuyutski commented, cheerfully.
"Hmm."
"The third New Tokyo, Nerv's hidden intercept base. And now, the long delayed seventh construction phase is about to be finished at last," Kouzou added, noting his superior's non-talkative mode. "It's almost complete." The monorail passed into the open air below the armour plating.
"Now, about Unit 04's 'accident'. How will you present that to the committee?" Fuyutski asked, changing the subject.
"With the facts," Ikari replied. "The cause is unknown."
"But...this was a major catastrophe," the grey-haired man said, shocked.
"It was of no consequence to us," Gendo told him. "The S2 engine sample may have been lost, but the data is still in Germany. This installation and Unit 01 will be sufficient."
"But the committee is in a total panic."
"Of course they're panicked," Ikari told his colleague. "It wasn't scheduled."
"Yes," Kouzou replied, tipping his head back and chuckling. "Seele must be busy rewriting their schedules now."
"Incidents not depicted in the Dead Sea Scrolls may occur. This should teach the old men a lesson," Gendo added. He sounded almost pleased.
--------------
Meanwhile, in one of the many staff rest area within headquarters, Ryoji Kaji was leant against one of the vending machines that lined the walls. Maya Ibuki was sat on one of the benches, holding her ever-present clipboard.
"The Third District Transformation and Directional Weapon experiment will be held on schedule," the bases automated voice announced over the intercom. Kaji took a swig from the can in his hand.
"The intercept system is completed, and they're not going to have a party for it?!" he asked, swallowing his drink. "Nerv has got to be the most inflexible and stifling organisation on Earth," he added, tossing his can into the overflowing bin beside him. It bounced off of two other cans, knocking them to the floor.
"Well, it's because of Commander Ikari," Maya told him. He stood up straight and sauntered over to the lieutenant.
"And are you a prude too?" he asked, leaning forward
"I don't think that's pertinent data sir," she told him, shuffling backwards on the bench. "And, uh, I'm going to have to tell Major Katsuragi and Dr. Akagi about this."
"Not if I cover your mouth with mine," Ryoji replied, closing the distance between their faces.
"Kaji! How's it going?" Misato called cheerfully from the entrance. Kaji's face lost its smile as he recognised her voice. He pulled back and looked at the major.
"Well, uh...it's going I guess," Kaji replied, straightening up. Ibuki took advantage of the situation and quickly got to her feet.
"Oh I have...work to do," she muttered, hiding her face behind her clipboard. "Excuse me." She quickly backed away from Kaji and left the rest area.
"Far be it from me to make judgements on your private life," Misato said, sternly once she was sure Maya had gone, "but under the current situation, are you sure it's wise to be hitting on people under certain chains of command?" Kaji sat down, having tidied the cans in the overflowing bin as she spoke.
"That's not your concern," he replied, looking at her. "Would you prefer to be hit on?"
"That depends on how you answer this," Katsuragi told him, moving to the vending machine he'd been leaning against earlier. "You know the secrets behind the Marduk Institute and that Adam thing, right?"
"Uh... What secrets?" Ryoji asked, looking away and playing innocent.
"Don't play games!" Misato snapped at him.
"This isn't like you Misato, asking for help," he commented, looking back at her.
"Well I'm asking Kaji," she told him. "It was just too convenient, the fourth-child being found like that. Something stinks here."
"I'll tell you one thing," Kaji replied, getting to his feet. "That fancy Marduk Institute, it doesn't exist. Nerv is pulling all the strings," he informed her, putting his face a short distance from hers.
"Nerv's pulling the strings? Commander Ikari?"
"You want a place to start? Try 707," Kaji told her.
"Code 707," Misato muttered, thoughtfully. "That's Shinji's school, isn't it?" Kaji took a couple of steps back, hearing footsteps approaching.
"Misato," Shinji called from the entrance. Kaji grabbed a can from the bin beside him and pretended to be drinking from it.
"Yes?" Misato asked cheerfully.
"Ritsuko says she's expecting you for a meeting about tomorrows trip," the third-child informed her.
"All right. Thank you," the major replied. "See you later," she muttered, walking past Kaji.
"Uh huh," Ryoji replied, the can held to his mouth. Shinji walked over to him, wondering what the two adults had been discussing. Kaji put the can in the bin as the boy approached. "So, can I buy you a drink Mr. Ikari? Cup 'o tea?" he asked.
"Kaji..." Shinji replied, staring him in the eye, "I'm a boy!"
--------------
"I gotta say, I thought you'd be more serious Kaji," Shinji said, cradling the can he had bought from the nearby vending machine. The two of them had moved outside of headquarters, and were not sat on a park bench several hundred metres from the facility.
"You're saying that to someone as straight arrow and reliable as me Mr. Ikari?" Kaji inquired.
"I... I'm sorry," the boy replied, lowering his head.
"I'm sorry too. I didn't mean to sound...rude," Ryoji replied. "Hey, I wanna show you something," he added, standing up. The third child looked at him. "Come on." Shinji stood up and followed him, putting his can in a bin as they passed it. A few moments later, the two arrived at their destination. The third-child was surprised to see the small patch of plants that Kaji was tending. He watched as his companion opened as small shack nearby and removed a watering can.
"You grow...melons?" the boy asked, kneeling down amongst the vines.
"Yeah, aren't they cute?" Kaji replied, looking at Shinji as he watered his little garden. "This is my hobby. But, keep it a secret, okay?" He sighed, feeling content. "Making something grow can be really great," he added wistfully. "You learn so many things from the process." He looked out over his garden. "It also brings pleasure," he added after a moment's silence.
"But pain too, right?" Shinji asked, standing up. Kaji considered this for a moment, before replying.
"Do you hate pain?" he asked.
"I...don't like it," the boy answered, looking at the plants before him.
"Ah, but have you found what gives you pleasure?" Kaji asked slyly, looking from the corner of his eye. He already knew the answer, but he wanted to see if the boy would admit to it. He was surprised when Shinji smiled in response.
"Well, if you've known pain and hardship, then it's easier to be kind to others," Ryoji related. "Being kind isn't a weakness," he added. The ringing of his phone pre-empted any further conversation. The third-child watched as Kaji put his watering can down and pulled out the phone.
"Hello. Yes." A pause. "Hmm." He looked at the boy. "It's Katsuragi," he informed him. "The synch test will be starting soon."
--------------
"Hmm. That's unexpected," Ritsuko said as she leant over the console Maya was using. The harmonic test was in progress and she was monitoring the results.
"What is it?" Misato asked, fearing the worst.
"It's Shinji's synch ratio," Akagi said, looking through the observation window at the test chamber.
"What about it?" the major enquired, looking at the doctor.
"Given what happened with the last Angel, I'd have expected his score to drop," Ritsuko told her friend.
"It hasn't?" Katsuragi asked.
"Well, it's fluctuating a little, but he's only lost four points. Nothing major," Akagi replied. "You know, I thought he'd be hesitant to pilot after the incident," she added.
"He hasn't said anything about not wanting to pilot," Misato commented, looking at the test chamber thoughtfully.
"But have you asked him?" Ritsuko queried, straightening up.
"No," the boy's guardian replied, sighing.
"Well, a fluctuating ratio may affect his ability to pilot, but then again it might not," The blonde-haired lady informed the major.
"He has been a little quieter than usual since..." Katsuragi said, trailing off to avoid the painful memories that accompanied any mention of what had happened with the last Angel.
"The fluctuation is probably a representation of his mental state," Ritsuko told her, leaning forward to type a command into Maya's console. "Try getting him to talk about how he feels about what happened."
"I'll try," Misato informed the doctor, her voice low, clearly expressing her concerns. "This is gonna make it even harder to tell him...about the pilot."
"Well, the new pilot will be informed officially tomorrow," Dr. Akagi told her. Misato sighed, and stared out in to space, her mind racing.
--------------
"Everyone stand up. Dismissed," Hikari Horaki announced. There was a clatter of feet and chairs being moved as the students of class 2A began their lunch break the next day. Kensuke stood up and wandered over to Toji's desk.
"All right, lunchtime," Suzuhara cried, stretching his arms out behind him. As usual, the boy had his feet on his desk.
"Toji Suzuhara, report to the principal's office," the school secretary announced over the PA system.
"Huh, what?" the boy in question asked, sitting up straight.
"What you do now?" Kensuke asked.
"Uh, I don't know," Toji replied, puzzled. He got to his feet. "Well, I'd better go find out what they want," he said, wandering over to the door. From his seat, Shinji watched him go, puzzled. A couple of minutes later and Toji was stood outside the principal's office. He knocked once and opened the door.
"Excuse me. I'm Toji Suzuhara," he said as he stepped inside.
"You're Toji Suzuhara?" Dr. Akagi asked, looking the boy over as he entered the office.
--------------
"So how was your trip to New Yokosuka?" Shinji asked Kensuke as the two of them looked out from the roof. Their lunches hung in bags from the railing surrounding the edge. The bespectacled youth was sat on the wrong side of the railing, his feet dangling over the lip of the building.
"Oh, it was way cool!" Kensuke answered. "Speaking of which, I did pick up some disturbing information," he added, looking at his friend, who was leaning against the railing. He quietly told the pilot on of the rumours he'd heard the day before.
"Eva Unit 03?" Shinji asked.
"Yeah. The one they built in the US," Aida replied. "It's been completed, hasn't it?"
"I...I don't know," the third-child answered, looking out over the school grounds. Kensuke leant towards him.
"I know it's classified, but come on. You've got to tell me something!" Kensuke begged.
"But I don't know! Really." Ikari assured him.
"Haven't you heard the rumour that the activation test will be held at the second test facility in Matsushiro?" the bespectacled youth asked.
"No, I hadn't," Shinji replied.
"Then the pilot hasn't been chosen yet?" Kensuke asked, tilting his head.
"How would I know?" his friend replied, looking in his direction. The sunlight glinting off Kensuke's glasses made him look away.
"Misato could choose me for the position," Aida said, getting excited. "Shinji, would you ask her for me? I really wanna be an Eva pilot!"
"I...I don't know if she could or not."
"Hmm," Aida replied, leaning back against the railings. "Well, what about the story that Unit 04 was lost?"
"Was lost?" the pilot asked, looking at his friend with a look of disbelief.
"You really didn't know?!" Kensuke asked, incredulously. "It disappeared along with the entire second branch. My dad's whole section was in a panic!" he related
"Are...are you sure?" Shinji asked.
"I've got my sources," Aida replied.
"Misato didn't tell me anything," the third-child told him, looking back out over school grounds.
"Well, you know... I guess it really doesn't concern the pilots," the boy with the glasses replied. "If she didn't tell you, it's probably because you don't need to know. I'm sorry about bothering you with all these weird questions." He stood up and looked around, puzzled. "Hasn't Toji come back yet?"
--------------
"Thus, we, mankind, survived the hell called Second Impact and rose again," the teacher said. The students were mostly busy making notes on the lesson, but a few had other things on their minds. Shinji was staring at Toji's empty seat, curious as to where his friend was. Hikari was looking at the same empty seat, looking worried about its missing occupant. "The number of children has been decreasing on a yearly basis..." The door at the back of the classroom opened and Toji entered to find most of the class looking at him.
"Uh, sorry I'm late," he said rather flatly, sliding the door closed.
"I know about it," the teacher told him, upset at the interruption of his lesson. "Be seated." Suzuhara wandered slowly to his desk and sat down, unaware that a certain girl watched. "Anyway, it is you, the younger generation who will lead the way to the future." Toji sighed heavily.
--------------
"Let's get outta here," Kensuke said as he wandered over to Shinji's seat after the class was dismissed for the day. Ikari was packing his bag when his friend approached.
"And Toji?" the third-child asked, looking behind him. Both of them looked at the apparently depressed youth still sat at his desk.
"Oh he's gonna be here late," Aida replied. "He's got clean up duty today."
"Oh," Shinji replied, closing his bag. He stood and began walking towards the door. "See ya Toji," he called from the doorway. Suzuhara looked at him blankly, before returning his gaze to the black board behind the teacher's desk.
--------------
Toji Suzuhara sat at his desk eating as the light from the setting sun filled the classroom. He'd already taken the trash out to the incinerators, now all he had to do was tidy the room.
"The school is now closing," the recorded voice of the school secretary announced over the PA system as Hikari wandered through the open door. "All students must go to their homes immediately."
"Oh, Suzuhara," the class rep said when she saw the boy. He looked up and stopped with a cake halfway to his mouth.
"Uh?"
"You're on clean up duty," the girl told him. She looked away. "You have to line up these desks and clean off the black boards."
"I haven't had lunch yet," he told her flatly, taking a bite from the cake. "I'll do it as soon as I've eaten."
"Do you always buy your lunch from the school shop?" Hikari asked, looking back at him.
"Of course," he replied, swallowing. "There's no one at home who can cook." He picked up a milk carton and began to drink from it.
"Suzuhara...uh..." the girl began, but trailed off, overcome by nerves.
"Hmm?" he replied, looking at her.
"I have two sisters," Hikari told him, looking away, feeling incredibly shy. "Their names are Kodama and Nozomi. And I always make lunches for them every day."
"Hmm, that's sure a lot of work," Toji commented, putting the now empty carton down.
"I'm actually a pretty good cook," she told the boy, looking at him, "but I guess you might not expect that." He raised an eyebrow, curious as to where this discussion was going. "And, you see..." she added, looking away again, "I always end up cooking too much for our lunches."
"Huh, that's definitely a waste," the boy replied. Hikari looked up at him. "You know, if you need help getting rid of the leftovers, I'll help," he told her.
"Yes please," she replied, smiling warmly.
--------------
"Hi Kaji," Asuka said as she slid open the door of his office. He was sat at his desk, busy typing on his computer.
"Oh, Asuka. Sorry, I'm busy right now," Ryoji told her without looking round. "Can't it wait?" The German stepped in and closed the door before answering.
"No," she replied, "it can't." The tone of her voice made the man stop and turn to look at her. She met his gaze and held it, despite feeling the need to look away.
"So what's so important?" he asked a moment later.
"Have you told anyone about Shinji and me?" she asked, closing the distance between the two of them. She stopped less than a metre from him.
"No," he assured her, turning his chair round so he wasn't twisting to look at her.
"Good," she replied. "Don't, please."
"If you tell me one thing," he told her, smiling at her.
"What?" the second-child enquired.
"Have you told him how you feel?" Kaji asked her. She was a little surprised by his question, but didn't hesitate to answer.
"Uh huh. Right after we got him back from the Angel," Asuka replied. "And you were right," she added. "All that time he was missing, I couldn't stand the thought of losing him without him knowing how I feel."
"I thought as much," he replied. "And does he feel the same?" The redhead nodded. "I'm glad to hear it," he told her.
"So, what are you working on?" the pilot asked him, trying to look at his screen.
"What? Oh nothing," he replied, doing his best to block her view. He had been caught off-guard by her sudden change of subject, but he didn't want her to see what he'd been doing.
"Oh, come on Kaji," she replied in her sweetest voice. "Lemme see." Ryoji sighed, realising he wasn't going to dissuade her, and moved his chair to allow her a closer look.
"Oh, our synch reports," she muttered. There's mine, Rei's, Shinji's and... she thought, gasping when she realised there were four reports. "Four?" she asked, looking at Kaji. "Who..." she began, looking back at the screen.
"HIM?!" Asuka cried, seeing the name on the fourth report. "He's the fourth-child?!" She looked at Kaji and he nodded. "I don't believe it!" she gasped. She felt as if the world was playing a cruel joke on her.
--------------
"Maglev six-four calling Neo-path four-zero-zero, confirm cumuli nimbus posits in our immediate flight path," the pilot of the transport carrying Evangelion Unit 03 requested. He wasn't really sure what effect flying through a storm would have on the robot his plane was carrying. "Over."
"This is Neo-path four-zero-zero. Cumuli nimbus clouds confirmed," a voice over the radio responded. "Barometer indicates no hazards. Maintain course and expect to arrive on schedule."
"This is XO six-four. Roger and out," the pilot replied, relieved. He smiled at his co-pilot and looked at the official behind them. "It's safe," he told her, smiling. She nodded, and regretted the movement instantly. Why had she been selected to accompany the Eva? It was well known that she got airsick.
The transport continued along its current course and entered the cloud formation. As soon as it had disappeared within it, orange energy crackled along the surface of the cloud.
--------------
"Where's Asuka?" Misato asked Shinji as she came out from her room. The boy looked at her, surprised to see her wearing her formal uniform.
"She already left," the third-child told his guardian from his position on the couch. "She said she wanted to be alone." He sighed. There had been something bothering the girl, that Shinji knew. And despite the fact that they had promised to talk about everything, Asuka hadn't told him what it was.
"Don't worry about it Shinji," the major said, carrying a number of bags to the front door. "A teenage girl can be difficult to understand."
"Are...are the rumours about Unit 04 really true?" Shinji asked, standing up. Misato looked at him, surprised. "I heard that...that there was some kind of accident, and that it exploded."
"I'm afraid so," she replied. "Unit 04 is gone, along with the American second branch." She sighed, noticing how dejected he looked. "It happened while they were testing the S2 engine," she added.
"Hmm. Wha...what happened?" he asked, looking out of the window.
"We're not sure yet," Katsuragi answered. "But don't worry, we'll be all right," she told him. "All three of our Eva's are functioning properly. And our pilots and staff are in good shape too."
"I also heard that Unit 03 is being brought here," Shinji related, looking at the luggage by the door. "You're performing the activation test at Matsushiro aren't you?" Misato took a few moments to organise her thoughts before speaking.
"Yes, I am. I'll be gone for about four days or so," the major informed the boy. "Kaji's gonna come over to look after you and Asuka."
"Is Dr. Akagi going with you?" the pilot asked.
"Uh huh. So don't worry about it, she'll be supervising everything."
"And who'll pilot the Eva?" Shinji asked, curious. Misato swallowed hard. This was the question she'd been dreading.
"Well, the pilot is..." she said, trailing off. Before anything else could be said, the phone rang. The major, glad of the interruption, walked over and answered it. "Hello." There was a short pause. "Oh, hi Ritsuko." Another pause, this one longer. "I'm on my way," she said, finishing the call. "I gotta go," she told Shinji, looking at the boy. She walked over to the front door and picked up her bags. "Bye Shinji," she said, opening the door.
"Good morning, Major Katsuragi," Kensuke said as the door opened, making Misato jump. "I've come to ask for your help!" She looked at him, curious as to what the bespectacled youth wanted. "I'm begging you. You've just got to choose me as the pilot for Evangelion Unit 03! You gotta!" Her mouth hung open in surprise.
--------------
"So, you haven't told Shinji yet, huh?" Ritsuko asked the major as the lorry they rode in drove along one of the many quiet roads leading to the test site. Misato was staring out of the window, watching the fields pass by. The doctor was busy analysing the data her laptop displayed.
"I just can't seem to find a chance to tell him," Misato replied, sighing. "I'm worried. There are times when I just can't figure out what he's thinking, you know?"
"Oh get a grip kid," Ritsuko told her friend. "You're the one who wanted to be his guardian."
"Yeah. You're right, of course," the major responded, sadly. "Um, so, when will you acquire the new pilot?"
"Tomorrow. There are still some details to be ironed out."
"Maybe the pilot will tell Shinji."
"Oh, I rather doubt it," Akagi told the major. "He wasn't very enthusiastic about the prospect. He won't talk. He only accepted under the condition that his younger sister be transferred to our private hospital." Misato closed her eyes and sighed, her heart heavy with concern for the boy in her care.
--------------
"How can Misato be so cruel?" Kensuke asked, feeling totally dejected. He was sat at his desk at the high school, head down. Shinji was sat backwards on his chair, looking at his friend. Toji had his feet on his desk and was looking at the strip lights overhead. He hadn't had much sleep the night before and really wasn't in the mood to listen to the bespectacled boy's whining. "I'm dying to pilot, so why won't she use me?" Kensuke continued. "It's just not fair."
"Yeah," Toji replied, sounding depressed. Shinji looked at him, wondering what had happened to his usually lively friend. The sound of the door at the back of class opening made the third-child look at it. Asuka wandered in, closing the door behind her.
"Uh hey, what's up? Y...you left before me, so how come you're only just getting here?" Shinji asked her. She walked past him without saying anything, her emotions in turmoil.
"Ah, no fight between the newlyweds today?" Toji commented, almost back to his usual self. She slammed her bag onto her desk, growling.
"I just didn't want to see your ugly faces!" she snapped. "You damned three...stooges." She sat down and closed her eyes. "Verdamt idiots," she muttered.
From his seat, Shinji watched her. Every instinct he had was telling him to go to her and find out what was going on, to help her any way he could. He wanted to hold her in his arms and drive away the source of her anguish. But if he did, their secret would be out. And he couldn't let that happen. He sighed heavily.
I'll ask her about it tonight, he thought.
--------------
"Ah, the precious moment of lunch time!" Kensuke commented, putting a carrier bag of food on his desk after the bell rang. Shinji was sat facing him, still worried about what was troubling Asuka. Kensuke looked around. "Hey, where's Toji?"
"I haven't seen him," Shinji replied, looking up. His friend looked at him, bemused.
"You mean he left?" the bespectacled boy asked. "Without his lunch? Toji the stomach? That's impossible!"
"Well, he's been acting...differently," Shinji told him, lowering his head again.
--------------
At that moment, Toji Suzuhara was stood on the roof, leaning on the guardrail, staring out over the school grounds.
"Mr. Suzuhara," a female voice said from behind him. He looked, and saw Rei approaching.
"Oh, it's you Ayanami," he replied, sadly. He looked forward, returning his attention to whatever it had been on. "If you're looking for Shinji, he's not here." She walked over and stopped a couple of steps from the railing.
"You know, don't you?" Suzuhara asked her. "About everything?" The first-child nodded. "I think Asuka knows too," Toji told her. "So Shinji's the only one who doesn't know." The boy looked at her from the corner of his eye. "You know, it's pretty rare for you to be concern about someone else," he commented.
"It is?" the blue-haired girl asked. "I'm not sure I understand."
"Oh, you have a thing about Shinji all right," Toji said. Rei looked surprised by what the boy had just said.
"I... Maybe that is true," Rei said, looking out over the grounds. Toji smiled.
"You do," he told her.
--------------
Hikari was looking out the window of class 2A, and could see Toji and Rei on the roof. Her heart sank as she watched them. They seemed to be talking about something.
"Hikari! Let's have lunch together!" one of her friends called. Hikari looked down at the parcel of food in her hands.
"Okay," the class rep replied, holding back the tears she felt welling up within her.
--------------
"It's over two hours late," Misato commented as she stood in front of the transport truck, chewing on a toothpick, "but...at least it's finally here." The transport carrying Unit 03 was landing vertically less than a hundred metres away. "This is the first time I've ever waited for some one this long!"
"That's because you never waited for guys back when you could still get a date," Ritsuko responded, leaning out of the drivers window, mainly to get away from the smell coming from the numerous food packets littering the inside of the cab.
"Oh shut up," Misato replied.
--------------
Toji hadn't gone back to class after lunch had ended. Instead, here he was, he sat against one of the pillars supporting the covered walkway leading to the gym. He had a vacant look on his face as he stared out into space. His mind had drifted back to his first encounter with Shinji Ikari.
----FLASHBACK--------------------------
Toji had been surprised by how hard the boy had hit the ground after he'd thumped him. But it had been satisfying. The boy who had been lead on his back before him was the reason his sister was in the hospital.
"I'm sorry newcomer," Suzuhara had said, rubbing his fist, "but I had to clobber you. I had to beat you to work off my own anger."
----END OF FLASHBACK-------------------
Toji held his fist up in front of him, then opened it, staring at his palm. Am I gonna be the reason for some other kid ending up like my sister? he wondered. He sighed, realising how Shinji must have felt after his first battle. He clenched his fist and stared at it. In the building behind him, the bell for the end of day rang.
--------------
"I'm sorry Asuka," Hikari said as the two walked along the streets of Tokyo-3. "You usually walk home with Shinji, don't you?"
"I only walk with Shinji because we work together," Asuka told her. Well, she thought, that used to be the only reason. She stopped as they reached a bench and sat down. Hikari did the same, and for a few moments the two just sat there, watching the sun set behind the city skyline. The light made all the buildings appear to be golden.
"This is about Toji, isn't it?" Asuka asked her friend, leaning back on the bench, enjoying the view.
"Yeah," Hikari replied, sadly. "How'd you know?"
"Everybody knows," the redhead told her, sitting upright. "The three stooges are the only ones who don't."
"Shinji seems sensitive," Horaki commented, looking at the German, "in a naive kind of way." Asuka caught herself just as she was about to agree.
"Shinji's a big fat dork!" she said quickly. "And he's denser than lead too!" she added, her feet twitching back and forth. "He wouldn't know how to relate to another person if you gave him a manual!"
"Oh. I see," Hikari replied, lowering her head. She'd been caught off-guard by her friend's vehemence. Despite all appearances to the contrary, Hikari was sure that the two pilots liked each other. She'd seen the softness in Asuka's eyes when she'd caught her looking at the boy. And she was sure she'd caught him sneaking looks at the redhead in class.
"Asuka, I think Toji might be interested in Rei," Hikari said. The pilot looked at her as if she'd grown another head.
"Are you kidding?!" the second-child asked. "Toji and Wondergirl?!"
"Well, at the lunch they seemed..."
"Ha!" Asuka said, interrupting her friend. "Don't worry Hikari. It'll never happen," she assured her. "If Shinji is denser than lead, then Rei Ayanami is off the atomic scale."
"Really?" Hikari asked, feeling hope rise within her.
"Yup," Asuka replied, nodding. The class rep smiled, feeling reassured. The German leant towards her. "Can I ask you something?"
"O...okay," Hikari replied, uncertain.
"Just what do you see in a dumb jock like that?" the second-child asked.
"His...compassionate side," Hikari told her, blushing. She smiled and turned way, feeling unaccountably nervous.
"Wha?!" Asuka replied, looking completely stunned and like she was going to fall off the bench. Toji?! Compassionate?! she thought, her mouth hanging open.
--------------
Later that evening, the pilot of Unit 01 sat at a small table in Misato's living room, reading a book. There was a laptop sat on the table, powered up. Asuka was lying on a large cushion, reading a magazine, with numerous others around her. Pen-Pen had fallen asleep on cushion to her left. The television was on, but neither child was paying it any attention.
"Asuka, I was wondering..." the boy started, looking at the German.
"Kaji sure spends a lot of time in the tub," she commented, interrupting him. He looked back at his book.
"I wonder who's going to pilot Unit 03," he said, sighing.
"What?!" Asuka asked, looking at him. "You mean you haven't heard?!"
"Who is it?" Shinji asked her. She looked thoughtful for a moment, then turned away, unable to meet the boy's gaze. "Come on Asuka," he said. "If you know, tell me. Please." The second-child sighed and hung her head.
"Toji's the pilot," she muttered.
"What was that?" the boy asked, unable to hear what she said. The girl turned around so she was facing him.
"I said 'Toji's the pilot'," she informed him. Shinji stared at her. She could tell from the look on his face that he didn't believe her.
"Yeah, that was refreshing," Kaji commented as he opened the door to the living room. He walked in, wearing a green robe and wiping his face on a white towel. "Are you two fighting again?" he asked, noticing the tense atmosphere.
"No!" Asuka replied, looking at him. She sighed. "Kaji, tell him who the fourth-child is." The man frowned.
"You mean to tell me that Misato hasn't told him?" Kaji asked. The redhead nodded. He looked at the boy and sighed. "The name of the fourth-child is Toji Suzuhara," he told Shinji.
"Re...really?!" the third-child stammered. The other two occupants of the room nodded. "But why didn't Misato tell me?" he whined.
"She probably wanted to, but didn't know how to tell you," Kaji assured him. Asuka got up and knelt on the floor next to the boy and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.
"Asuka, what are you..." Shinji started, but the girl put her hand over his mouth to silence him.
"It's all right Shinji," she told him, "Kaji knows."
"You told him?!" the boy asked, pulling away from her.
"Don't be too hard on her," Kaji said. "I figured it out." Shinji looked at him, bemused. Asuka took advantage of the situation and wrapped herself around the boy again. After a moment's hesitation, Shinji relaxed and enjoyed the comfort the girls arm brought him. "And don't worry," Ryoji told the boy, "I'm not going to tell anyone. You two deserve all the happiness you get." The third-child looked at him thoughtfully for a moment, before turning his gaze on the young lady whose arms held him.
Kaji sighed as he saw the look of contentment in the young couple's eyes. For a moment, they rested their foreheads together. The, the pilots got up from the table and walked hand in hand over to the couch. Asuka snuggled up under the boy's arm as they settled on to it, pulling her legs up under herself.
"So is there anything decent on?" Kaji asked as he sat down chair opposite the two children.
--------------
For Shinji Ikari, it had turned out to be an almost perfect evening. He and Asuka had been able to enjoy time together as a couple without fear of being seen. The only thing that could have made it better in the boy's mind was if they had been able to go on an actual date. Still, it had felt like a date. He'd even walked Asuka to her room when it had been decided that they would all to go to bed. And they'd kissed again. It was something the couple hadn't done that often, and every one felt like the most precious gift in the world to the boy.
Not wanting to sleep in Misato's room, it had been decided that Kaji would share Shinji's, with him taking the bed. Kaji had argued against it, not wanting to upset the boy's normal routine, but the third-child had insisted.
"Hey, Kaji, are you asleep yet?" the boy asked after almost five minutes of silence in the darkened room.
"No, not yet," Kaji replied.
"Um, well... What's my father like?" Shinji asked. He'd been debating whether or not to ask that question for sometime.
"Now there's a surprise," the man replied, smiling in the darkness. "I'd have thought you'd ask about Misato."
"It's just..." the third-child started, but trailed off, unsure of how to say what he wanted "It seems like you're always with my father."
"Commander Fuyutski's the one who's always with him," Ryoji told him. He sighed, realising he wasn't going to get any sleep for a while. "Have you been asking around about your father?"
"I just...haven't been around him much," the boy replied.
"So, you really don't know him," Kaji commented.
"But, I...I've learned a lot about him lately," Shinji added. "I...I've learned how he feels about his work, a...about my mother.
"You're wrong Shinji," the man told him. "You only believe that you've learned. But people can't really understand themselves, much less each other. Understanding one hundred percent of anything is...impossible." He rolled on to his back and stared at the dark ceiling. "That's why we spend so much time trying to understand our own motivations and those of others. That's what make life so...interesting."
"So you can't understand Misato, then?" the pilot asked. Kaji turned his head and looked in the direction the voice had come from.
"The Kanji we use for the word 'she' means 'a woman far away', and women will always seem to be on a distant shore," Ryoji related, chuckling slightly. "The gulf between men and women is broader and deeper than any ocean."
"I don't understand adults," Shinji commented from his position on the floor.
"Some of us never do," Kaji muttered. He sighed and turned to face the wall. A few short moments, he heard the child's breathing slow as sleep claimed him. I guess he got the answers he needed, Kaji thought.
--------------
The next morning was bright and sunny at the Nerv Test Facility in Matsushiro. The Evangelion from America was deep inside the facility, secured within the temporary cage that had been constructed for it. Outside, technicians were busy scurrying all over the place, carrying out checks on the systems that would be used.
"T minus 300 minutes to Unit 03 activation test," a female voice announced over the PA system as Misato stood outside the control vehicle they would be using. It was followed by other voices, all of which were unknown to the major, but she paid them no heed. She sighed and entered the vehicle.
"Roger," Ritsuko said as the door closed behind Katsuragi, "team B, commence operation." Misato wandered over to the doctor and crossed her arms.
"Data link to Evangelion Unit 01 established," a male technician announced.
"The systems all up and ready for full activation," Akagi told her friend, as she looked up from the clipboard in her hands at the monitors lining the walls.
"Great! Let's get started," the major said, looking bored.
"Well that was enthusiastic," the blonde commented, looking back down at her clipboard. "You know that Unit 03 will be assigned to you once it's passed its tests, don't you?"
"Exclusive control of four Eva's..." Misato muttered thoughtfully, looking at Ritsuko, slyly. "If you wanted to, you could conquer the world." The doctor gave her friend that spoke volumes.
"Have you told Shinji about the fourth yet?" she asked, returning her attention to her current task.
"No. I'll...tell him after the test," the major replied. Akagi looked at her and sighed.
"The fourth-child has arrived," the female voice announced over the speakers. "Squad 2, begin entry preparations immediately."
--------------
A few moments later, at the high school attended by the pilots, Hikari Horaki was stood by Asuka's desk, a food bundle in her hand.
"Toji hasn't shown up yet Asuka," Hikari commented, looking around her. The German looked at the class rep then rested her head on her hand, looking down at her desk.
"Yeah, he may not come today," the second-child told her. Hikari sighed and lowered her head.
"I thought we might eat together today," she muttered, feeling depressed. A moment later she smiled, and held the package up. "Do you want this?" she asked her friend.
--------------
"Unit 03's already arrived in Japan, hasn't it?" Kensuke Aida asked Shinji as the two stood on the roof, leaning on the guard-rail.
"Uh huh," Shinji replied. "It got here yesterday."
"This sucks!" the bespectacled youth commented. "Who's gonna pilot it then?" Aida hung his head. "Toji was absent today, maybe it's him." Shinji sighed heavily, staring out into space.
--------------
Back at Matsushiro, the entry plug for Evangelion Unit 03 was being inserted as the two spoke. Misato and Ritsuko stood side by side in the command vehicle, watching the process with interest.
"Entry plug secured," a technician announced as the display before him showed it spinning into position.
"Initiating first connection," a female technician added, typing commands into her console. The major looked at one of the overhead monitors. It displayed an image of the Eva's face. The Unit's eye began to glow white.
"Transmitting pulse," the male technician continued. "Graph readout is normal."
"Graph display is within tolerance," a second male voice announced.
"Phase one contact, all clear," a third told the doctor.
"Roger," Ritsuko said. "Operation will proceed to phase two."
"Full nerve link established," the third stated, entering commands into his console. "Harmonics are reading standard. We are now approaching the absolute border." Just as the technicians display showed the progress pass the point marked 'BORDER LINE', a flash caught the major's eye.
What was that? she mused, looking at the overhead display again. It had been brief, but the major could have sworn she saw a red glow coming from the Eva's eyes. Everyone jumped as alarm sirens began sounding, and the lighting switched to the red emergency system.
"Break the nerve circuits!" Dr. Akagi ordered. "Abort the test!" The major watched as the umbilical cable was jettisoned from the back of the unit.
"No!" a second female voice cried as the Eva began to move. "Mission failure! We've got high energy readings in the body," she added, fearing what her instruments were telling her.
"An Angel!" Ritsuko cried in disbelief as she looked at the console before her. Misato watched, transfixed, as white filaments became visible over the entry plug port. "NO!" Akagi cried.
--------------
In the cage, the Eva struggled to free itself from its restraints. After a few moments of effort, it opened it's jaws, and the world around it turned to white.
--------------
Miles away, on the outskirts of Tokyo-3, an old man stopped to rest. He'd been walking for the past twenty minutes, and he was tired. In his youth, he used to run for hours, but now he couldn't even manage a half-hour walk without tiring.
A bright flash caught his eye. Turning his head, he saw a large plume of smoke rise up over the hills in the distance. Years ago, the old man had been a soldier, and as such, he recognised it's cause. An explosion, unmistakably.
--------------
"There's been an explosion at Matsushiro," Shigeru Aoba announced over the blaring sirens. All the personnel manning the command centre were busy trying to figure out what had happened at the test site.
"Damage level unknown," Maya added, trying to pick up a feed from one of the many cameras that had been set up to monitor the activation test.
"Send the rescue squad and third battalion," Kouzou Fuyutski ordered from his position behind them. "We've got to handle this before the self-defence force gets involved."
"Roger," Makato responded, doing so. Aoba looked up from his console after checking the data it was displaying.
"We've got an unidentified object detected at the site," he told the grey-haired commander.
"Its pattern is orange," the bespectacled technician added, calling up the pattern analysis on the main screen. "We can't confirm that it's an Angel yet."
"Go to first stage alert," Gendo Ikari ordered from his post. As usual, he had his chin resting on his hands.
"All personnel go to first stage alert!" a male voice announced over the base intercom.
"Prepare for surface to surface combat," another technician announced.
"All Eva's, prepare for launch," Maya ordered, activating the communications link to the three pilots, who were already inside their units. "Disperse for maximum intercept potential. Air transportation to Matsushiro will go in twenty."
--------------
"There...there's been an accident, at Matsushiro?" Shinji Ikari asked. Evangelion Unit 01 was crouched by the base of Mount Nobe, beside a generator installation. "It...it can't be," he added, refusing to accept what he was being told. "What happened?"
"That is unknown," Rei Ayanami informed him over the voice link. "Contact has yet to be restored."
"But what are we gonna do?" the third-child asked. "We need Misato." A video window appeared to his left. It was Asuka.
"We're gonna have to go for it on our own," she told the boy. Shinji looked at her, and her expression softened, seeing the look of concern on his face. "It's not like we have any other choice, is it?"
"But...who'll give us our orders?" Shinji asked. Another video window appeared, this one to the right of the link to Unit 02. It was Rei
"Commander Ikari will command this operation," the first-child informed him.
"My father will?" Shinji asked, surprised.
--------------
Back at the command centre, Fuyutski was now stood beside Gendo. He looked concerned. Something about the current situation bothered the older man, but he wasn't sure what it was exactly.
"We're receiving an image of the target from the Nobe mountain station," Shigeru announced, interrupting Kouzou's musing. "Transferring to the main monitor." On the main screen, the image of a bend in a road appeared. Evangelion Unit 03 lumbered around the corner. The longhaired technician gasped in shock.
"As we suspected," Fuyutski muttered.
"Transmit the abort signal," Gendo ordered. "Eject the unit's entry plug." Maya typed in the relevant commands.
"It's now working, sir," she reported. "Neither the abort or plug ejection codes are being accepted."
"What about the pilot?" the commander inquired. Makato checked the feed he was receiving.
"His heart's still beating and he's still breathing," he related. He sighed heavily. "But, he's probably..." he trailed off, unwilling to finish his sentence.
"I see," Gendo commented. "Then we must accept the loss of Evangelion Unit 03. Reclassify it as the 13th Angel," he ordered. Shigeru, Maya and Makato turned and looked at him.
"What?!" Maya asked, her voice no more than a whisper.
"But, sir..." Makato started, intending to object.
"Deploy our forces around the base of Mount Nobe," Ikari ordered, ignoring the reactions of his sub-ordinates. "The target must be destroyed!"
--------------
In his cockpit, Shinji had his head down, trying to compose himself for the battle that he was soon to follow.
"Target is approaching," Shigeru informed the pilot's over the comm. link. The boy looked up. The silhouette of a figure was visible against the setting sun.
"All units, prepare to engage," Makato ordered.
"Huh?!" Shinji gasped, sitting upright as he recognised the shape before him. An Eva. "I...it can't be! Is that the Angel?"
"Correct," he fathers voice confirmed. "That is your target."
"It may be our target, but that's Unit 03, isn't it?" Shinji asked.
"Gott en himmel!" the boy heard Asuka gasp over the intercom. "How could it have been possessed?" she asked in a quiet voice.
"Irrelevant," Commander Ikari replied.
"What about the entry plug?" Asuka asked, fearing for the safety of the fourth-child.
"We tried to eject it, but couldn't," Maya informed the pilots.
"You mean he's still in there?!" the second-child asked, shocked.
"It is an Angel," Ikari stated coldly. "It is our enemy. Destroy it."
"No! I won't," Shinji snapped back at his father. "My friend's in that thing."
"You must destroy it!" Gendo replied, his voice colder than ever.
--------------
"Commander! We've lost the link to Unit 01," Makato informed his superior, looking at his console, surprised.
"Re-establish it," Gendo ordered. The bespectacled technician's hands flew over his console as he tried to do so.
"I'm trying," he replied. "But it's being blocked. By the pilot."
--------------
"Asuka, Rei, you've got to help me save Toji!" Shinji told his fellow pilots. "We can't leave him in there!" Ayanami became confused by the state of mind she found herself in.
"You got it!" she heard Asuka reply without a moment's hesitation. The first-child remained silent. Unit 02 left its assigned position and began to make its way to Unit 01.
"Unit 02, return to your position," Rei heard the commander order.
"Stuff it!" Asuka told him. From the sound the first-child then heard, it was apparent that the German had also severed her connection to headquarters, a severe breach of protocol.
"Rei?" the boy asked over the radio.
"We must obey the commander's orders," she stated calmly.
"Screw the commander!" Asuka replied, her voice displaying how angry she felt. "That's our friend in that thing."
"Rei, assist them," Gendo ordered over the link to Evangelion Unit 00.
"Yes sir," she replied quietly, relieved the decision had been made for her.
--------------
"So how do we do this then?" Asuka asked the third-child. He sat silent in his cockpit for a moment, deliberating the problem.
"You and Rei hold it down," he added a few moments later, "and I'll remove the plug."
"Sounds good to me," the redhead replied. "What about you Wondergirl?"
"I assist," Ayanami replied.
"Then lets do it!" Asuka told her.
--------------
Units 00 and 02 charged at the Angel, knocking it down before it could react. Asuka's Eva then grabbed it's arms whilst Rei's grabbed it's legs. Shinji quickly moved his machine over to the prone Angel.
"Hurry it up will ya," Asuka told him over the intercom. "This things hard to keep down."
In his cockpit, Shinji nodded. He moved Unit 01 over the Angel, and pulled away the white filaments surrounding the plug. So the plug did try to eject, he thought as the filaments snapped. The thing beneath him roared and bucked. Ignoring it, he grasped the plug carefully, and began to pull. Although stuck, he felt it begin to move.
"Hold still dammit!" the third-child cursed as Unit 03 struggled even harder to free itself. Asuka and Rei held it down firmly. It may have been able to move, but it couldn't free itself.
"Be careful not to crush it," Asuka grunted at him as she used all her effort to hold down the infested Eva. Shinji didn't respond, concentrating on the task at hand. After the plug had moved about half a metre, it stopped. Looking closely, the boy could see a large number of thick filaments wrapped around it.
"Damn thing," he muttered. If he gripped hard enough to be able rip them, he'd crush the entry plug. A thought occurred to him, and the cover of his right shoulder compartment flipped open. Reaching up, he removed his progressive knife and activated it.
"What are you doing?!" the redhead asked him, shocked to see him draw his blade.
"I'm gonna have to cut it free!" Shinji replied. "Now hold it still," he told her. He lowered the tip of the blade, and began to cut through the filaments. It was difficult, as the progressive knife had not been designed for tasks requiring such precision. He felt himself begin to sweat as he concentrated on moving the blade around the edge of the plug. One by one, he severed the strands.
Reaching with the Eva's left hand, he gently grasped the plug and tugged. It gave a little. But as it moved, more strands became visible. Feeling frustrated, he began to cut again, pulling at the plug all the time. After a short space of time, time that had felt like an eternity to the boy, he had cleared the last of the filaments and withdrew the plug completely.
Suddenly, all three pilots found themselves flying through the air as the Angel roared even louder than before and used it's AT Field to free itself. As Unit 01 hit the ground, the impact jarred the entry plug from its hand, and it flew away, landing next to a deserted building. The force of the landing also knocked the progressive knife from the other hand, and the wind from the pilot.
--------------
Rei cried out as she felt the Angel land on the back of her Eva. It grasped the back of Unit 00's neck, holding it down. As she struggled to free herself, she felt a sudden searing pain in her left shoulder and cried out, grasping it. Outside, a viscous pink liquid was dripping from the Angel onto the Eva.
--------------
"The Angel is merging itself into Unit 00's arm," Maya cried as she read the report she was receiving from the battlefield. "Nerve contamination spreading."
"Sever the left arm immediately," Commander Ikari told her.
"But the pilot's nerve connections are still active," Maya objected.
"Cut it off!" he ordered, forcefully, in a voice that frightened the lieutenant.
"Right," she replied quietly, transmitting the appropriate code to the Eva.
--------------
In her cockpit, the first-child threw back her head and screamed in agony as the left arm of her Eva was explosively jettisoned from its body. The arm flew through the air, and smashed the building the entry plug had landed next to, causing it to bounce further away. Rei struggled to look upwards, and saw the infested Unit 03 stand up and walk away from her.
"Unit 00 is heavily damaged," she heard Lieutenant Ibuki say over the audio link to headquarters, obviously informing the commander. "The pilot is wounded."
--------------
Shinji shook his head to clear it as he fought he way back to consciousness. Slowly, the blackness that he could see was replaced by the view of the interior of his entry plug. The sounds of battle began to fill his ears. Looking around, he saw Unit 00 on the ground. He was about to call out to Rei when a piercing scream froze his heart.
"Asuka?" he cried, recognising her voice. "Asuka?!" Searching frantically around him, he saw Unit 02 lead on the ground, its head on the crushed remains of a lorry. "YOU BASTARD!" he screamed at the Angel, and charged at it.
--------------
"Unit 02 has ceased transmitting," Makato informed commanders Fuyutski and Ikari as the data link that he'd managed to establish fell silent.
"The pilot's ejected," Maya added. "Recovery teams are moving in for retrieval."
"What's the status of Unit 01?" Ikari asked.
"The pilot has regained consciousness," Makato replied, checking his console, "and is..."
"YOU BASTARD!" Shinji cried, his words ringing through the command centre as the audio link to Eva 01 reopened.
"Oh my God!" Shigeru cried, scarcely believing what the feed from the Mount Nobe station. "He's charging the Angel!"
"What?!" Fuyutski demanded, leaning on Ikari's desk. Shigeru Aoba transferred the image to the main screen, just as Unit 01 smashed into the Angel. The impact caused the two to hit the ground several metres from where the Angel had stood. "My God!" Kouzou gasped as he watched the Eva get to its feet.
--------------
From his cockpit, Shinji stared at Unit 03 as it lay on its back, his rage driving him in a way he had never known. He watched the Eva for any sign of movement, ready to attack it. Before he could react, the Eva raised its right arm, which stretched forward and its hand wrapped itself around Unit 01's throat. Shinji felt the pressure of the grip being transferred to his own neck and struggled for breath. The left hand quickly joined the right.
He raised Unit 01's hands and tried to prise the Angel's grasp away. The possessed Unit 03 got to its feet, and slammed the purple Eva into the hillside. As he struggled to breathe, the third-child spotted something familiar nearby. It was his progressive knife. He reached for it, but the Eva's fingers were just short. By force of will, he was able to make Unit 01 shift a little, enabling its fingers to touch the end of the handle. Stretching the hand out as far as he could, he was able to paw the knife close enough to grasp it, and thrust it with all the strength he had left into the body of Unit 03.
The Angel threw back its head and howled as the vibrating blade sank into its torso. Feeling the grip on his neck loosen, Shinji twisted the blade, enlarging the wound. The sound coming from the Eva above him made him cringe, but the hands around Unit 01's throat loosened sufficiently for him to fill his burning lungs. He released the progressive knife, and seized the Angel's wrists, squeezing them as hard as he could, breaking its grasp.
He moved the hands from the vicinity of the purple Eva's neck, fighting against the Angels as it struggled to free itself from his clutches. A roar rose from the pit of his stomach as he lifted Unit 01's left leg, put it against Unit 03's chest and pushed as hard as he could. The Angel was sent flying backwards. His grip on its right wrist slipped due to the dirt on the Eva's hand from reaching for the progressive knife, but his left hand held, and the forearm of the infected Eva ripped apart, leaving a bloody stump in his hand. He threw it to the ground at got to his feet.
--------------
"Sir! Shinji's synch-ratio just jumped twenty points!" Maya cried out, reading the data her console displayed.
"Impossible!" Fuyutski shouted back at her. From his seat, the commander of Nerv merely smiled, watching the battle unfold on the main screen.
"The Magi have confirmed," Maya replied. "And it's still increasing!"
"What is the pilot's current ratio?" Gendo asked calmly.
"Eighty six percent," Maya replied, checking her console. "Ninety one. Ninety four. Ninety seven," she related, reading off the figures as fast as they appeared on her display. "It's stopped. Ninety eight point zero seven percent."
"Interesting," Ikari commented, absorbing the data.
--------------
Back at Mount Nobe, Shinji shoulder barged the Angel, knocking it to the floor. Leaning over it, he sank Unit 01's hand into the wound the progressive knife had caused, causing the creature to scream in pain. Gripping the edge of the laceration, he pulled, ripping away a large section of the Eva's armour from the lower torso. Flinging it away, he grabbed the other side of the wound and did the same. As he reached for the gapping wound again, Shinji found himself flying backwards as the Angel used its AT Field to free itself once more.
He cried out as the back of Unit 01 slammed against the side of the mountain and the force of the impact was passed to his own. The Eva staggered to its feet and lumbered towards the Angel, which was now upright. In a sudden move, it flung its right arm out, grasped the purple Eva's umbilical cable and pulled it. Realising its intent, the third-child quickly jettisoned the cable from the Eva's back.
--------------
"Unit 01 has switched to reserve power," Shigeru announced. "Five minutes remaining in the internal batteries."
"I believe that will be sufficient," Gendo Ikari said. As he had watched the battle, he had felt a pride for his son that he had never known before. "Is there any change in the pilot's synch-ratio?"
"Negative," Maya reported, checking her figures. "It's holding steady and ninety eight point zero seven." A loud crash made the eyes of all those present in the command centre look at the main screen. Unit 03 was once more lead on the floor. Shinji's Eva stood over it, and kicked it, sending it flying.
--------------
Shinji quickly closed the distance between the Eva's and bent over the prone Angel. Balling up his unit's fists, he smashed them repeatedly into the face of his enemy. Over and over he punched it, until the armour on the head began to fall away. Then he reached as deep as he could into the hole in the Angel's torso, grabbed a hold of whatever he could find, and yanked it out as hard as he could.
--------------
Maya gasped, and averted her eyes, unwilling to witness the carnage unfolding on the command centre's main display. Everyone else's attention remained on the battle, hypnotised by what they saw.
"Thir...thirty seconds of activation remaining," Shigeru somehow managed to say, as shocked as everyone else.
--------------
His rage higher than ever, Shinji stood his Evangelion up, lifted its right leg and held it over the Angel's head. After a moment's hesitation, he brought the foot down as hard as he could, crushing the cranial framework of Evangelion Unit 03. Its head exploded, sending pieces of tissue flying.
Shinji sat in his cockpit gasping for air as the power failed and the Eva shut down around him. Despite the presence of the LCL, he could feel the tears that ran from his eyes, tears of great sadness.
--------------
"Activation terminated," Makato announced quietly as the emergency batteries exhausted their energy. He looked down at his console, and forced back the bile that had risen in his throat. I didn't think Shinji had that in him! he thought, still in shock over what he had just witnessed.
"Impressive," Ikari commented, pleased by what had occurred. Fuyutski looked at him in shock.
"Impressive?!" he asked, startled by his superior's remark. "You find that impressive?!" he demanded, gesturing to the main display. He knew that the commander had little respect for the pilots, but Kouzou had had no idea the man could be so callous, especially towards his own son.
"Indeed," Gendo responded. "He show great promise," he added. He got up from his desk and began to walk to the door. "Fuyutski, take care of this," he said as the door slid open in front of him.
--------------
Hikari Horaki hummed softly to herself as she looked through the recipe book in her hands. She was stood in the kitchen of the house she shared with her sisters and sighed as she read the details of each one.
"Now which should I cook for Kodama, Nozomi and myself," she muttered quietly. "But these all serve four," she added, looking upwards. "I sure hope he's hungry tomorrow."
--------------
As consciousness returned to Major Katsuragi, her head felt like it was going to explode and there was a terrible ache coming from her left arm. She forced her eyes open and blinked several times as they refused to focus. As they did, she became aware of the sounds of the rescue operation that was going on around her.
"Am...I alive?" she murmured feeling a bandage on her cheek stretch as she moved her jaw. Moving her eyes, she saw that her left arm was bandaged. That explains the ache, she thought, guessing that it was broken, or at least fractured. "Kaji?" she asked, noticing he was sat next to her.
"You were lucky...Katsuragi," he told her, looking relieved that she was awake.
"Ritsuko...where is she?" Misato asked, recalling that her friend had been with her. She couldn't at that moment remember exactly what had happened however.
"Don't worry," Ryoji told her. "She wasn't hurt as bad as you."
"Oh. Good," the major replied, relaxing a little. Suddenly, her mind was filled with images as her memory of what had transpired returned. "Wha...what about Eva 03?" she gasped.
"It was destroyed," he informed her, "as an Angel...by Unit 01." Misato turned her head away from him, her heart sinking.
"I...I never told Shinji..." she muttered, barely holding back the tears.
"Don't worry," Kaji said, making her look back at him. "He knew. And he saved his friend."
"H...how did he f...find out?" the major asked, relief colouring her voice.
"I told him," Ryoji replied. It wasn't exactly the truth, but close enough. "I guess you could just never find the right moment," he added.
"How...how's the pilot?" Katsuragi asked. She had to know.
"I'm not sure," Kaji told her. "He was airlifted to the infirmary."
"Oh God," Misato muttered, closing her eyes.
"Shh," he told her, stroking her uninjured cheek. "Everything's gonna be okay. Just take it easy."
--------------
Shinji looked up as he heard someone approach. He was sat with his back to Unit 01, a towel wrapped around him. The rescue operation was going on behind him, beyond the Eva, but he couldn't face it. The tears had stopped flowing, but the sadness refused to leave his heart. Looking up, he saw that it was Asuka. She walked over to him and crouched in front of him.
"How are you feeling Shinji?" she asked softly, a look of genuine concern on her face. He sniffed and blinked before speaking, trying to compose his thoughts. It was clear to her that he had been crying, the tears still staining his face.
"Confused," the third-child told her, dropping his head. "I just... I can't seem to..."
"Shh. It's okay," the redhead told him, putting her hand over his mouth to silence him. "Do you want to be alone for a while?" she asked. He shook his head.
"Please stay," he replied, sounding tearful. She moved her hand from his mouth to his cheek, then ran it through his hair. He looked up at her, surprised by her tenderness. "Asuka, what are you..."
"It's okay Shinji," she said, interrupting him. "Everyone's kinda busy. They're not going to look for us for a while," she related. She leaned forward and kissed his forehead gently. He looked at her, and she could clearly see the need for companionship in his eyes. She smiled tenderly at him and sat beside him, leaning against him. Surprising her, Shinji wrapped the towel around her, draping his arm across her shoulder as he did so. The German leant her head against the boy's, allowing the contact to reassure them both that they were still alive.
To be continued...
Next Chapter -
Another Angel, and Unit 01 receives an upgrade.
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Well, what do you think? Please contact me with your comments. I'll try to answer any questions in the author notes for the next chapter.
If you want to discuss something with me, please send me an e-mail. My address is CEO_Room3@Hotmail.com. I'll do my best to respond to all correspondence.
I'll try to get the next chapter out as soon as possible, but it could take awhile. Please be patient.